Mouthguards and Dental Trauma in Sport
The choice of guard and the first minutes after an accident decide the outcome together.
Types of mouthguard and what separates them
There are three types. A stock guard is used as it comes and, since it does not fit, stays in place only if the teeth clench on it, hampering speech and breathing. A boil-and-bite guard is softened in hot water and bitten into shape, fitting better, though thickness can end up uneven and thinnest at the front where protection is most needed. A custom guard is made on a model from an impression, with thickness planned where risk concentrates; it stays put without clenching and interferes less, which also makes athletes more likely to actually wear it. A guard that is not worn protects nobody. Patients in braces need a guard designed for them.
The first minutes when a tooth is knocked out
- Hold it by the crown; do not touch or rub the root surface
- If dirty, rinse for a few seconds in saline or milk only
- If possible replace it in the socket at once and bite on clean gauze
- If not, store it in milk, saline or the patient's own saliva
- Never keep it in water or let it dry; the root cells are quickly damaged
- Time is critical: reach the clinic within 30-60 minutes
- Tell the clinician if tetanus vaccination status is unknown
Baby teeth, fractured fragments and other injury types
An avulsed baby tooth is not replanted, because the developing permanent tooth bud beneath can be damaged, permanently affecting its enamel or its path of eruption. The child should still be assessed for retained root fragments, soft tissue injury and neighbouring teeth. If a piece of tooth has broken off, keep it: brought in milk or saline it can often be bonded back with a colour match no filling material can equal. Teeth that are loosened, displaced or pushed into the bone are also urgent, and a new change in the bite or a locked jaw calls for assessment of the jaw itself.
Getting Here, Booking and Emergencies from Yesiltepe
Route, booking and emergency arrangements for patients from Yesiltepe.
Getting here from Yesiltepe
Yeşiltepe lies in the Kepez district of Antalya; Kepez is one of the central districts, about 6 kilometres from the clinic. We also see patients from neighbouring areas that share the route from Yesiltepe, such as Mehmet Akif Ersoy, Şelale, Yavuz Selim, Zeytinlik. You can ask for the location on WhatsApp when travelling from Yesiltepe.
Appointments for Yesiltepe
At this distance, splitting treatment into visits is no problem for patients from Yeşiltepe, and attending reviews is easy too. As with patients from Kepez generally, appointments for families from Yesiltepe can be scheduled consecutively.
Emergencies from Yesiltepe
Setting out from Yeşiltepe at night is quick; come without delay in an emergency, and calling as you leave means preparation is done in advance. For patients coming from Dental Clinic in Yesiltepe, the clinic is open 24/7 and in an emergency the order is set by severity rather than arrival time. For spreading facial swelling, difficulty swallowing or breathing, or toothache with fever, go to the nearest emergency department.
Preventive Dentistry: A Plan Built for the Person
Giving everyone the same advice — brush twice a day, come every six months — is easy but does not protect the person at high risk. Real prevention begins with measuring that risk.
How risk is measured
These headings are assessed and recorded at examination:
- New decay and fillings in the last three years
- Pocket depths and the proportion of bleeding sites
- Saliva flow and medications that cause dry mouth
- Frequency of eating — frequency rather than quantity
- Systemic factors such as smoking, diabetes and reflux
- Braces, implants and bridges that make cleaning harder
How the plan changes with risk
For a low-risk person, six-monthly reviews and standard fluoride toothpaste suffice. For a high-risk person the plan changes entirely: three-monthly reviews, prescription high-fluoride paste, fluoride varnish, sealants, dietary adjustment and, where needed, saliva stimulants. Giving both the same advice means over-protecting one and under-protecting the other.
Risk is not fixed
Someone low-risk one year can be high-risk the next: a new medication, pregnancy, starting orthodontic treatment, smoking, or a meal pattern disrupted by a change of job. Risk is therefore reassessed at every review and the plan updated. An interval that stays fixed at six months means that assessment is not being made.
