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Night Guards and Why They are Important

Do you experience regular headaches, earaches, broken teeth, and jaw pain? If so, you could be one of the millions of people that have bruxism. Commonly known as teeth clenching or grinding, bruxism is a condition that occurs during sleep or sometimes during waking hours. It is a common sleep disorder which affects approximately 20% of adults (1). Reports show that it is more prevalent in children, though the number gradually declines with age (2).

Aside from prolonged headaches, bruxism greatly affects the condition of your oral health. When you experience grinding at night, your teeth are being subjected to a huge amount of pressure and vertical stress. This added stress can cause fractures in teeth and broken fillings, which can eventually lead to infection and damage of your tooth nerve. If left untreated, chronic problems may arise which include extensive wear of enamel, accelerated tooth loss, gum recession, and even TMJ disorders.

There are several ways to manage bruxism and the most common solution is the use of mouth guards or night guards. These are simple yet helpful devices worn at night to protect your teeth from further damage caused by grinding. If you would like to experience relief from bruxism, schedule a consultation with Ericson Dental today. We would be delighted to assess your oral condition and fit you with a customized mouth guard.

Interested in a Night Guard?

It’s time to get your REM sleep back and the pains of bruxism to vanish. Schedule your night guard fitting today and start feeling better tomorrow!

References

  1. Lavigne, G.J., Khoury, S., Abe, S., Yamaguchi, T., & Raphael, K. (2008, June 9). Bruxism physiology and pathology: An overview of clinicians [Abstract]. Journal of Oral Rehabilitation, 35(7). 476-494. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2842.2008.01881.x
  2. National Sleep Foundation. (n.d.). Prevalence of sleep-related bruxism (SB). The Sleep Disorders. Retrieved from http://sleepdisorders.sleepfoundation.org/chapter-7-sleep-related-movement-disorders/sleep-related-bruxism/p/
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