When playing contact sports like football, hockey, and rugby, athletes often take blows to the face or mouth. Though this is all part of the game, not wearing the right protection can leave your oral health in danger. Dental mouthguards can go a long way in protecting your teeth, but accidents still happen. Read on to learn about three of the most common dental emergencies that athletes run into.
#1: Cracked Teeth
When playing sports that involve balls, pucks, racquets, sticks, bats, or physical contact, be extra cautious. A single blow to the face can easily result in a fractured or cracked tooth. Craze lines are surface cracks that don’t usually pose a threat to your oral health. But, if the cracks begin at the chewing surface of the tooth and extend downward, this warrants a dental emergency. Some symptoms to look out for include:
- Pain while eating and drinking, especially hot or cold foods and drinks
- Sharp pain when biting down
- Frequent tooth pain
#2: Tooth Intrusion
While some sports injuries can knock a tooth out, others can drive it back into the jawbone. This type of injury is called an intrusion. Intrusions are usually more common in baby teeth, but they can still happen to athletes of all ages. They can lead to other complications, such as shortening of the roots (root reabsorption) and the destruction of the tooth pulp. It can also cause ankylosis, which occurs when the injured tooth’s roots fuse to the alveolar bone.
#3: Fractured Tooth Roots
If you sustain a blow to the face at a certain angle, this could lead to a fractured tooth root. A crack will begin to form at the root level and will extend upward to the crown of the tooth. Since people often can’t see fractured roots, they may only realize there’s something wrong once an infection develops. In this case, root canal therapy may be necessary to keep the infection from spreading so the tooth doesn’t need to be extracted.
How Athletes Can Prevent Dental Emergencies
Though your emergency dentist will do what they can to help if you encounter one of the above issues, it’s best to avoid them in the first place. There are a few precautions that athletes can take to avoid dental emergencies, including:
- Wear a mouthguard –Mouthguards help protect your teeth and gums from injuries while you play sports. Though they can be purchased over the counter at some grocery, sports, and drug stores, you can also have one custom-made by your dentist.
- Wear a helmet – Another way to keep your mouth safe while playing sports is by wearing a helmet. It will create an extra barrier between your face and anything flying at it.
There are several ways that people can get hurt while playing sports, but your dentist is here to help. With the above tips and a good dental team, you can keep your smile is excellent shape all season long!
About the Practice
The compassionate, accommodating team of oral health professionals at Jacksonville Complete Dentistry offers their patients the high-quality services they need to keep their smiles looking healthy and bright. They offer services to prevent dental emergencies and are also here when the unexpected happens in the middle of a big game. For more information on their emergency dental services or to make an appointment with Jacksonville Complete Dentistry, visit their website or call their office at (904) 645-6457.