Tag Archives: Mouth Gear

More Mouthguards Make Our List

23 Oct

This is not a prestigious list by the way, it is more of a “beware of list”, and two different companies/mouthguards have now found my ire.  Perhaps I was “Pollyanna-ish” about companies continuing to claim that this particular piece of equipment can attenuate concussions or even reduce problems; it should have been fair warning with the FTC’s decision on Brain-Pad.

Any device placed in the mouth is for oral-dental protection, nothing more.  Any claims otherwise are not based on any scientific evidence, because none exists to my knowledge.  If you want to prevent what you see in the picture you must wear a mouthguard/device.  If you want to prevent concussions, don’t participate in collision or contact sports, period.

If I told you that one company says;

“A serious blow to the head can leave you with significant physical and mental problems years after you’ve hung up your equipment. Gladiator® may prevent or reduce the severity of concussion.”

What would you say to that?  But they are not the only one;

“By wearing a Guardian Mouthguard, you are helping to protect yourself against concussions!”

That will be the last time I mention those companies.  I don’t like to send traffic their way, but if you do not believe me Continue reading →

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Mouth Gear Comments

30 Sep

If you have not been following the comment section you have missed a debate on mouth gear and concussions (Please feel free to enter into the conversation).  I believe that the information about how there is no current evidence that any oral device can attenuate concussions or help with symptoms related to the injury of concussions.  Here is a statement from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Sports Medicine Handbook – 4th Edition;

“The effectiveness of mouthguards for preventing or reducing the risk of sustaining a concussion remains controversial. Research continues to be done on the different mouthguards and their properties to answer this question, but there is currently no reproducible evidence supporting the use of any mouthguard to protect against concussion in any sport.”

For a health care professional dealing with sports injuries this should be a telling statement.  However there are those out there trying to push a product and make money on the misinformation about concussions.  Below you will see some of the exchange and the prime example of why there continues to be a problem. Continue reading →

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Mouth Gear Information

26 Jul

Courtesy of Jonathan Harford via Flickr

Back in November I took on the mouth gear issue by showing some emails that I had with a few of the prominent companies invested in oral/facial protection.  I use the term “mouth gear” to isolate any device that is placed in your mouth, this is a very hot topic, especially since the football season is about to begin.  If you have read that post you know my stance on the issue at hand; buyer beware.

Lets begin with some video footage of athletes wearing mouth gear;

  • The first KO is textbook mechanism of injury that the mouth gear companies say they can protect against; a blow to the jaw, where the jaw bone (mandible) would slam into the skull.
  • The third KO is a blow to the jaw, in a rotational axis, again companies claim they can protect against concussive injuries when a blow is received on the jaw.
  • The fourth KO is a straight right to the jaw.
  • The fifth KO a left to the jaw in a rotational axis.
  • Should I keep going????  I think you get the point.

It’s not so much that the companies in question Continue reading →

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Mouth Gear Controversy (UPDATED)

8 Nov

Courtesy of Jonathan Harford via Flickr

It is called “mouth gear” because many outfits are trying to cash in on the concussion issue. This is certainly a hot topic and one that I am not afraid to wade into. I also feel that it is good time to bring it up because, well, my inbox is slammed full of information.

It began with an email from Mark (REDACTED), EVP of (REDACTED) who makes mouth “orthotics” and mouth guards.  For the purposes of this discussion, we will call anything inserted to the mouth, mouth gear.  I was presented some research material that showed that using such mouth gear that concussions could be reduced(Dental_Traumatology%20Publication).  In the discussion it presented that more information and study is needed to look into this orthotic for the mandible area.  But what they are using to base that on is a very limited and uncontrolled subject pool.  28 subjects that have not only grown in age, but in size, and awareness of concussions.  This subject pool only was defined as “competitive” seasons as the longevity of the study.  Did that mean the subjects went from high school sports to college, or just competitive intramural sports in college?  Did the subject stop playing football during that time and pick up golf?  It does not say, all limitations to the study and huge factors in reducing concussions.

Heck even the website has some misinformation on it, look for yourself (unlinked) the text says;

“I previously had 3 concussions.  I started wearing the Maher Mouth Guard 3 years ago and have not had a concussion since.  I feel very comfortable wearing The Maher Mouth Guard and recommend it for any contact sport.  It is perfect!” -Assante Samuel, New England Patriots. Continue reading →

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