What is a Night Guard Supposed to Do?
Night guards are used to cushion the upper and lower rows of teeth, protecting them from the excessive dental wear and often-intense jaw pain that occurs when people grind their teeth, a condition known as bruxism, or habitually clench their jaws. These medical-grade, flexible devices resemble tooth whitening trays or invisible aligners, encasing each row of teeth and helping to maintain a healthy space between the upper and lower rows. Night guards don’t prevent people from grinding or clenching, but they do protect both the teeth and the jaws from the discomfort and damage that these habits can lead to. Without the protection of a night guard, bruxism often leads to painful inflammation in the jaw, in the form of temporomandibular joint disorders, and it also weakens the teeth, increasing the likelihood of dental fractures, infection, and other dental damage.
How Do I Know If a Night Guard Will Help Me?
If you frequently wake up with headaches, it’s worth it to see your dentist, as this can be an indicator that you’re unknowingly clenching or grinding your teeth in your sleep. Dentists can diagnose bruxism by evaluating the condition of the teeth and jaw, and patients may also learn about their own bruxism from sleep partners who are disturbed by the grating sound of grinding teeth. When TMJ disorder is present, symptoms could include pain in the face, jaw, or neck, and this pain may radiate to the surrounding areas. Patients with TMJ also report difficulty chewing or fully opening the mouth, swelling in the face, a painful bite, and a feeling of clicking or tension when the mouth is opened or closed. Using a custom-fitted night guard can reduce or eliminate these symptoms while preventing damage to the teeth and jaw and maintaining the structure and appearance of dental restorations. If your dentist determines that bruxism is the cause of your TMJ, they may recommend a night guard, which will help correct the alignment of the teeth while reducing pain and tension in the jaw, headaches, and many other uncomfortable symptoms of TMJ disorders.
Where Should I Get My Night Guard?
While you may see over-the-counter night guards at your local drugstore, these devices can actually make the problems of bruxism or TMJ worse. The best approach to getting a night guard that will actually work as it’s intended is to get a custom-fitted night guard from your dentist. While these cost a bit more than drugstore devices, they are far more effective at ensuring the correct alignment of the jaws, they are more comfortable and more stable, and they are made of higher-grade materials that can be expected to last far longer than commercial guards. Getting fitted for a custom night guard is a painless, brief procedure in which your dentist makes an impression of your teeth. This impression is sent to a fabricating lab and used as a mold to fashion a perfectly fitted night guard, which is checked and adjusted to ensure a perfect fit. Because of the precision of their design and construction, custom night guards are very easy to get used to and won’t interfere with breathing or speaking, silently and comfortably doing their protective and preventative work while you sleep.