Not everything in life needs to be complicated, which is certainly true of a simple night guard. From teeth grinding to jaw pain, you can easily resolve these potentially serious problems by wearing a simple acrylic device over your teeth when you sleep.
If you want to learn more about the many benefits of a night guard, Dr. Mohammed Mansour
and the team here at Plano Dental Distinction present the following information.
Conditions that can benefit from a night guard
There are two primary purposes for a night guard, starting with bruxism, which is the medical term for grinding or clenching your teeth.
Teeth grinding largely occurs at night while you sleep, which not only keeps your bed partner up, but it can also wear down your teeth prematurely. This nightly grinding and/or clenching not only breaks down the protective enamel on your teeth, leaving them more susceptible to tooth decay, you can also develop:
- Chipped or cracked teeth
- Sensitive teeth
- Jaw pain
- Headaches
- Dislocation of your jaw
- Worn chewing surfaces
- Damage to the soft tissues in your mouth
The problem with bruxism is that you can be unaware of the problem, only realizing that you’re doing it when your bedmate reports the issue or we find evidence of it during one of your routine check-ups.
With a simple night guard, which we typically design for your upper row of teeth, we can protect your teeth from the laundry list of complications we outline above.
Another problem that a night guard can help treat is a temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorder, which may or may not be related to your bruxism. TMJ disorders characteristically lead to pain and inflammation in the tiny joints on either side of your jaw, but the problem can also cause headaches and radiating facial pain.
With a night guard, we cen relieve the pressure on your TMJs so you can find relief.
Getting a night guard
The process for getting a night guard is very easy — you simply come in so that we can take an impression of your teeth. We then send the information off to an outside laboratory for custom manufacture of your night guard.
You can choose between a soft or hard night guard, and we help guide you in this decision based on your needs and your goals.
Once your night guard is ready, you return to our office, and we ensure the device fits you properly. We’ll also supply you with complete care instructions so you get the most out of your night guard.
To learn more about how a night guard can preserve your dental health and relieve your discomfort, contact our office in Plano, Texas, to set up an appointment.