Mouthguards are integral to keeping your smile safe. Whether you’re in braces, are wearing retainers after braces, or have already completed treatment, mouthguards help to protect your teeth and gums from injury. If you are active in sports, mouthguards are crucial to keeping you and your orthodontic appliances safe.

Potential Risks

Whether you’re in the middle of orthodontic treatment or not, it’s important to protect your smile. Even if your mouth is healthy, an accidental injury may be severe. Without proper protection, trauma to the teeth, gums, or jaw can be painful and even require orthodontic treatment to fix the injury. A severe blow to the jaw can also increase the risk of a concussion. To help, a mouthguard can absorb the force from an impact and reduce the likelihood of injury to the brain.

If you are currently in braces or Invisalign, blunt force to your mouth can also cause damage to your brackets, wires, or aligners. While most problems are easy to repair, you may experience a longer treatment time and accrue additional fees depending on the extent of the damage to your appliances and teeth.

Mouthguard Options

At Great Smiles Orthodontics, we can help you find the right mouthguard for your smile. To give you the most comfortable fit, we can use dental impressions to match your mouthguard precisely to your teeth. It’s important to note that although this option provides the highest level of protection and comfort, it can also be the most expensive while teeth are moving throughout treatment. For patients still in braces, we recommend our stock mouthguards to protect against injury.

Keeping Your Smile Great

No matter what phase of treatment you’re in, we want you to continue to enjoy doing the activities you love without worrying about damaging your appliances or hurting your teeth. For more information on the right mouthguard for you, contact our office or request an appointment today.