• Home
  • About Us
    • About Dr. Soo Jun
    • About Dr. Grace Jung
    • Our Office
    • Our Team
    • Our Policies
  • First Visit
  • Services
    • Check Up Pediatric Dentistry
    • Preventive Pediatric Dentistry
    • Restorative and Cosmetic Pediatric Dentistry
    • Behavior Management Pediatric Dentistry
    • Laughing Gas Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Conscious Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Hospital Pediatric Dentistry
  • Contact
  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Dr. Soo Jun
    • About Dr. Grace Jung
    • Our Office
    • Our Team
    • Our Policies
  • First Visit
  • Services
    • Check Up Pediatric Dentistry
    • Preventive Pediatric Dentistry
    • Restorative and Cosmetic Pediatric Dentistry
    • Behavior Management Pediatric Dentistry
    • Laughing Gas Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Conscious Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Hospital Pediatric Dentistry
  • Contact

Mint Kids Dentistry Blog

What is the Difference Between Night Guards and Mouth Guards

2/8/2017

 
Picture
You may be wondering: what is the difference between a dental night guard and a mouth guard? Can I use a sport mouth guard to protect from teeth grinding? Well, thankfully, this article answers these questions.

What is a Dental Night Guard?
An occlusal splint, more commonly called as night guard, bite guard or dental guard, is used to protect the teeth while you’re asleep. Most dentists advice the use of night guard to patients suffering from bruxism or involuntary teeth grinding. When a person habitually grinds his teeth, he is suffering from a condition called bruxism. This affects 10 percent of the total popular and as many as 15 percent of children.

Bruxism can chip your teeth, increase tooth sensitivity and ruin enamel. Further, too much clenching of the haw may lead to TMJ disorder (temporomandibular joint disorder) which can sometimes require surgery.

Picture
What is a Mouth Guard?
A mouth guard is an oral device that covers the gums and teeth to protect and prevent injury to the lips, gums and teeth. The American Dental Association suggests wearing a mouth guard for sports played in the winter and fall:
  • Football
  • Basketball
  • Field Hockey
  • Gymnastics
  • Ice Hockey
  • Lacrosse
  • Rugby
  • Volleyball
  • Boxing
  • Wrestling
  • Ultimate Frisbee
It is recommended to use custom mouth guards over store-bought as it provides more than just protection for the teeth. Based on one study, high school football players who wear store-bought mouth guards were twice likely to suffer from mild traumatic brain injuries than those who wear properly fitted mouth guards. Tell your pediatric dentist to make dental impression for you. It will be sent to a laboratory that creates mouth guards.

Checking the Material
A night guard is intended to be worn every night or every time the child sleeps, so it’s made using a material that’s not too thick but tough enough to serve its purpose.

On the other hand, a sports mouth guard is a device meant for athletes or players to protect their teeth from any injuries due to a physical blow on the face. Sports mouth guard is often fabricated with a thicker material. It extends to cover the entire jaw and the gums so that the whole mouth can be protected. Sports mouth guard can be made to be part of your child’s team uniform. It can be made to incorporate the team’s logo/sign or color.

Understanding the Function
Both mouth guards and night guards are designed to protect the teeth, however, they protect your teeth in a distinct way. A night guard works by protecting the surface of the teeth from wear and tear du to constant clenching and grinding. A mouth guard is mainly work to protect the mouth and teeth in case of accident or sudden, forceful impact.

The difference between the two is that a night guard has to be made from a durable hard plastic to endure grinding over long periods of time, while a mouth guard is made from a softer material that can absorb the force of sudden blow. Also, the dental night guard only cover the occlusal surface of the teeth while the mouth guard must cover your entire teeth, as well as the gums.


    Author

    Mint Kids Dentistry

    Archives

    July 2021
    June 2021
    March 2021
    January 2021
    November 2020
    October 2020
    July 2020
    April 2020
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016

    Categories

    All
    Flossing

    RSS Feed

Location

What Our Patients Are Saying

★★★★★
"Literally THE best kids dentistry EVER!!! If you want to have your kids' teeth checked out and have a blast time for them, then look no further. I don't do positive reviews because I feel that I pay for the service anyways but I must say, this placed is awesome for both kids and the parents. Highly recommend..”
— YELP user Jy C.

★★★★★
​"I was pretty nervious when my kid mentioned his toothache, because making my kid sit straight is very tall order, let alone when dentist probbing his mouth. Surprisingly, Dr Jun made my kid relaxed and somehow found a way to extract his teeth. My kid went to her again in a week, with no fear for follow up appointment. 

I would recommend her anytime. ”
— YELP user Ebe J.

Contact Us

1500 145th PL SE,
Bellevue, WA 98007
​
Ph: (425) 321 - 0833 
Fax: (425) 310 - 3772
Email: [email protected]
Business Hours
Mon, Wed, Thurs 8:00 - 5:00
Tues, 8:00 - 5:00

Fri (10-4 Administrative Only)
Pediatric Dentistry Blog

Sitemap

Home
About Us
About Dr. Soo Jun
​About Dr. Grace Jung
Our Office
Our Team
​Our Policies
First Visit
New Patient Registration & Medical/Dental History Form
​Forms
Services
Check Up
​Preventive
Behavior Management
Restorative & Cosmetic
Laughing Gas Sedation
Conscious Sedation
Hospital
Forms
Contact
Espanol
Blog

Designed & Managed by JSK

  • Home
  • About Us
    • About Dr. Soo Jun
    • About Dr. Grace Jung
    • Our Office
    • Our Team
    • Our Policies
  • First Visit
  • Services
    • Check Up Pediatric Dentistry
    • Preventive Pediatric Dentistry
    • Restorative and Cosmetic Pediatric Dentistry
    • Behavior Management Pediatric Dentistry
    • Laughing Gas Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Conscious Sedation Pediatric Dentistry
    • Hospital Pediatric Dentistry
  • Contact