title: Assessment of custom and standard, self-adapted mouthguards in terms of comfort and users subjective impressions of their protective function.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Various sports disciplines involve some risk of injury. Orofacial injuries constitute 4-18% of all sports-related injuries. Mouthguards are an effective method of preventing injuries and their consequences during various sports activities, especially cycling, football, basketball, handball, skiing, and hockey. Mouthguards can cause discomfort when placed in the oral cavity, in particular due to the fact that a minimal thickness of 4 mm in the labial region is necessary to reduce the impact force of an injury.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The objective was to provide user's general clinical assessment of custom mouthguards made from various polymer materials and with various technologies (thermoforming pressing, traditional flasking, injection molding) and of standard 'boil and bite' mouthguards available on the market in terms of general comfort and their subjective impressions of the protective function.
  
  
  METHODS
  In total, 168 mouthguards (five types of custom mouthguards and three types of standard 'boil and bite' mouthguards) were assessed by 21 athletes practicing various disciplines, who were asked to complete a questionnaire regarding general comfort and subjective impressions of protective function based on a 5-point scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Custom mouthguards made with the injection technique from ethyl vinyl acetate received the best scores due to the high level of comfort and the sense of protection they provided.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Custom mouthguards, especially those fabricated with the injection molding technique of Corflex Orthodontic, were shown to be superior to standard mouthguards in terms of their comfort and users' subjective impressions of their protective function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Prosthodontics, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland.
authors.forename: Dominika
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gawlak
authors.forename: Elżbieta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mierzwińska-Nastalska
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mańka-Malara
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kamiński
mesh_terms: D001265:Athletic Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D008446:Maxillofacial Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009064:Mouth Protectors; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D013177:Sports; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: dental trauma; mouthguards; orofacial injury; sport; teeth trauma