Mouthguards

[pucknutz]

Why is the mouthguard rule not strictly enforced? As an orthodontist, you need to know that the cage, while protecting your teeth does nothing for concussions! The mouthguard is to minimize concussions not save your teeth. I am apalled by the number of players that either, don't have one, have it out of their mouth hanging from the mask, or they're chewing on it. Then look at the shape some of those mouthguards are in. Chewed up pieces of rubber do nothing. People wonder why the rate of concussions is at such an alarming level? Referees need to STRICTLY ENFORCE mouthguard rules. Furthermore, I believe that they should skate by each bench and observe that each player has one, and it's in good repair. If the player doesn't keep the mouthguard in their mouth...it's 2 minutes...it is that important!

[oneIdmonsta]

i think u need to take a chill pill kids are kids they are going to do things just because they are told not to there is no way that refs are going to be able to control them wearing mouthguards no matter how hard they try. if they want to take the risk they are going to and then we they get good and licked they will decide on their own to throw it in.

[wbmd]

Why is the mouthguard rule not strictly enforced? As an orthodontist, you need to know that the cage, while protecting your teeth does nothing for concussions! The mouthguard is to minimize concussions not save your teeth. I am apalled by the number of players that either, don't have one, have it out of their mouth hanging from the mask, or they're chewing on it. Then look at the shape some of those mouthguards are in. Chewed up pieces of rubber do nothing. People wonder why the rate of concussions is at such an alarming level? Referees need to STRICTLY ENFORCE mouthguard rules. Furthermore, I believe that they should skate by each bench and observe that each player has one, and it's in good repair. If the player doesn't keep the mouthguard in their mouth...it's 2 minutes...it is that important!

You can also include that they stuff their mouthguard into the cage of the helmet - in clear sight of the ref's who fail to either notice it or just ignore it.

[Papa Bergundy]

I guess everyone just wants to learn the hard way this year. Either getting pummeled and biting a hole through your tongue or a severe concussion.

[hockeydad]

I too wish that this rule were enforced. It has always bothered me as well.

[wbmd]

The sad thing is, it's been like this at least for the last 14 years now.

[oldguy39]

ONEI, IT SOUNDS LIKE YOU HAVE BEEN HIT IN THE HEAD ENOUGH ALREADY . I DONT THINK A MOUTHGUARD WILL HELP YOU ANYHOW.

[goldy313]

I guess everyone just wants to learn the hard way this year. Either getting pummeled and biting a hole through your tongue or a severe concussion.

Rochester Century has had a rash of concussions this season after having a handful last season. Amazingly most still don't want to wear them, you have to wonder just how many concussions will it take before the kids put them in, so far 5 isn't enough. I suppose it's much easier to blame the refs or complain about hits to the head but trading a 2 minute roughing penalty for 2 weeks on the shelf and multiple doctor visits hardly seems an equal trade off.

[Bucky]

Check out this report, www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/ourgame/goalsa ... guard.html

Respect for the game and your opponents will have a greater impact in reducing the rate of concussions vs. a little piece of plastic that you put in
your mouth.

[hockeyhair15]

Check out this report, www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/ourgame/goalsa ... guard.html

Respect for the game and your opponents will have a greater impact in reducing the rate of concussions vs. a little piece of plastic that you put in
your mouth.

thats a great article, and it makes sense if you think about it. when your head snaps back from a hit or slams into the boards, thats when things get dangerous. i have always believed it should be the players choice. especially in highschool, when you have the cage to protect your teeth. if its uncomfortable, mine always made me gag, or disrupts your breathing, then just jump through the hoop and have in attached to your cage and puh it off to the side. as the article said its not going to prevent head trauma. i witnessed an example of this earlier this year. a kid on my junior team fell down on a scramble infront of the net, another skater inadvertently kicked him in the head. he was wearing his helmet, visor, and mouthguard, but began to convulse in seizures. he was fine and rode home with us after a breif hospital visit, but this incident goes to show that a peice of plastic isnt going to prevent you from sustaining a head injury. what it will do is help you keep all your teeth, but since in highschool we wear cages its not really an issue.

[HockeyMania3]

i wear mine.... since i saw my friends teeth get knocked out... if u wanna see it go to youtube and type true hockey player now v3

[pucknutz]

Check out this report, www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/ourgame/goalsa ... guard.html

Respect for the game and your opponents will have a greater impact in reducing the rate of concussions vs. a little piece of plastic that you put in
your mouth.

thats a great article, and it makes sense if you think about it. when your head snaps back from a hit or slams into the boards, thats when things get dangerous. i have always believed it should be the players choice. especially in highschool, when you have the cage to protect your teeth. if its uncomfortable, mine always made me gag, or disrupts your breathing, then just jump through the hoop and have in attached to your cage and puh it off to the side. as the article said its not going to prevent head trauma. i witnessed an example of this earlier this year. a kid on my junior team fell down on a scramble infront of the net, another skater inadvertently kicked him in the head. he was wearing his helmet, visor, and mouthguard, but began to convulse in seizures. he was fine and rode home with us after a breif hospital visit, but this incident goes to show that a peice of plastic isnt going to prevent you from sustaining a head injury. what it will do is help you keep all your teeth, but since in highschool we wear cages its not really an issue.

Mouthguards & Concussions
Mouthguards provide protection to the athlete in three different ways. Mouthguards protect against concussions by serving:
As a shock absorber.
They protect against neck injuries.
They protect the teeth by distributing the force of a blow over all the teeth and diminishing contact between the mandible (lower jaw) and the maxilla (upper jaw).
The most important function of the mouthguard is in preventing of concussions and brain injuries (Witzig, 1992). A mouthguard with the proper thickness of 3 to 5 mm between the teeth can reduce the rate of concussion by preventing the condyle (lower jaw hinge) from being forced into the base of the brain (temporal bone) at impact. Ninety five percent of all football concussions are transmitted through the mandible to the brain (Witzig, 1992). The use of mouthguards should be encouraged in all contact sports as the most important value of the mouthguard is the concussion saving effect following impact to the mandible (Stenger, 1964).

A concussion is defined as head trauma-induced alteration in mental status that may or may not involve loss of consciousness. Definitions for each category are presented below.

Grade 1 Concussion
Definition: Transient confusion, no loss of consciousness, and a duration of mental status abnormalities of <15 minutes.

Grade 2 Concussion
Definition: Transient confusion, no loss of consciousness, and a duration of mental status abnormalities of >15 minutes.

Grade 3 Concussion
Definition: Loss of consciousness, either brief (seconds) or prolonged (minutes or longer). Source: Qualify Standards Subcommittee, American Academy of Neurology

The Most important function of the mouthguard is in the prevention of concussion and brain injuries (Witzig, 1992).

Separation of the condyle and the base of the skull when a mouthguard with the proper thickness is in place, the space caused by the mouthguard acts as a buffer so the force of a blow will not be transferred to the base of the skull, thus reducing the rate of concussion.

Sport Dentistry Facts:
Dental injuries are the most common type of orofacial injury sustained during participation in sports, the majority of these injuries are preventable.

More than five million teeth are knocked out each year during sports activities.

An athlete is sixty times more likely to sustain damage to the teeth when not wearing a protective mouthguard.

The cost of a fractured tooth is many times greater than the cost of a dentist diagnosed and designed professionally made mouthguard.

Every athlete involved in contact sport has about a 10% chance per season of an orofacial injury or a 35-56% chance during an athletic career.

The cost to replant a tooth and follow up dental treatment is about $1500.00.

A properly fitted mouthguard reduces the chance of sustaining a concussion from a blow to the jaw.

The American Dental Association recommends wearing custom mouthguards for the following sports: acrobatics, basketball, boxing, field hockey, football, gymnastics, handball, ice hockey, lacrosse, martial arts, racquetball, roller hockey, rugby, shotputting, skateboarding, skiing, skydiving, soccer, squash, surfing, volleyball, water polo, weight lifting, wrestling.

[Stealth]

Is it a rule in High School?

[Bucky]

Check out this report, www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/ourgame/goalsa ... guard.html

Respect for the game and your opponents will have a greater impact in reducing the rate of concussions vs. a little piece of plastic that you put in
your mouth.

thats a great article, and it makes sense if you think about it. when your head snaps back from a hit or slams into the boards, thats when things get dangerous. i have always believed it should be the players choice. especially in highschool, when you have the cage to protect your teeth. if its uncomfortable, mine always made me gag, or disrupts your breathing, then just jump through the hoop and have in attached to your cage and puh it off to the side. as the article said its not going to prevent head trauma. i witnessed an example of this earlier this year. a kid on my junior team fell down on a scramble infront of the net, another skater inadvertently kicked him in the head. he was wearing his helmet, visor, and mouthguard, but began to convulse in seizures. he was fine and rode home with us after a breif hospital visit, but this incident goes to show that a peice of plastic isnt going to prevent you from sustaining a head injury. what it will do is help you keep all your teeth, but since in highschool we wear cages its not really an issue.

Mouthguards & Concussions
Mouthguards provide protection to the athlete in three different ways. Mouthguards protect against concussions by serving:
As a shock absorber.
They protect against neck injuries.
They protect the teeth by distributing the force of a blow over all the teeth and diminishing contact between the mandible (lower jaw) and the maxilla (upper jaw).
The most important function of the mouthguard is in preventing of concussions and brain injuries (Witzig, 1992). A mouthguard with the proper thickness of 3 to 5 mm between the teeth can reduce the rate of concussion by preventing the condyle (lower jaw hinge) from being forced into the base of the brain (temporal bone) at impact. Ninety five percent of all football concussions are transmitted through the mandible to the brain (Witzig, 1992). The use of mouthguards should be encouraged in all contact sports as the most important value of the mouthguard is the concussion saving effect following impact to the mandible (Stenger, 1964).

A concussion is defined as head trauma-induced alteration in mental status that may or may not involve loss of consciousness. Definitions for each category are presented below.

Grade 1 Concussion
Definition: Transient confusion, no loss of consciousness, and a duration of mental status abnormalities of <15 minutes.

Grade 2 Concussion
Definition: Transient confusion, no loss of consciousness, and a duration of mental status abnormalities of >15 minutes.

Grade 3 Concussion
Definition: Loss of consciousness, either brief (seconds) or prolonged (minutes or longer). Source: Qualify Standards Subcommittee, American Academy of Neurology

The Most important function of the mouthguard is in the prevention of concussion and brain injuries (Witzig, 1992).

Separation of the condyle and the base of the skull when a mouthguard with the proper thickness is in place, the space caused by the mouthguard acts as a buffer so the force of a blow will not be transferred to the base of the skull, thus reducing the rate of concussion.

Sport Dentistry Facts:
Dental injuries are the most common type of orofacial injury sustained during participation in sports, the majority of these injuries are preventable.

More than five million teeth are knocked out each year during sports activities.

An athlete is sixty times more likely to sustain damage to the teeth when not wearing a protective mouthguard.

The cost of a fractured tooth is many times greater than the cost of a dentist diagnosed and designed professionally made mouthguard.

Every athlete involved in contact sport has about a 10% chance per season of an orofacial injury or a 35-56% chance during an athletic career.

The cost to replant a tooth and follow up dental treatment is about $1500.00.

A properly fitted mouthguard reduces the chance of sustaining a concussion from a blow to the jaw.

The American Dental Association recommends wearing custom mouthguards for the following sports: acrobatics, basketball, boxing, field hockey, football, gymnastics, handball, ice hockey, lacrosse, martial arts, racquetball, roller hockey, rugby, shotputting, skateboarding, skiing, skydiving, soccer, squash, surfing, volleyball, water polo, weight lifting, wrestling.

Pucknutz, I am not disagreeing with you, hockey players need to protect themselves by all means possible, including wearing their mouthguards properly and by not putting themselves in vulnerable positions on the ice.

I just believe what I stated in my first post.

There are way too many hits that are not clean and even necessary.

Unfortunately these incidents start way too early in hockey.

As for the Century players, How many of them have had prior concussions as peewees and bantams?

It was once believed that younger brains were less susceptible to concussions and actually healed faster, now we know that is not the case.

[pucknutz]

You are correct there are way too many hits that are not clean and even necessary. But, we cannot control how a player behaves before he gives a poorly judged check. You can penalize him later, but the damage is already done. There is a rule in the book about mouthguards, it is never ever enforced. Players are injured through a referees unwillingness to make an unpopular call.
The rule today reads, “All players, including goalkeepers, are required to wear an internal mouthguard that covers all the remaining teeth of one jaw. The mouthguard shall not be altered from original manufacturer specifications, except with the prescription of a medical authority.” Players and referees have not been in compliance with this rule. Unfortunately, it has taken the recent increase in the incidence of mild and severe brain injuries in ice hockey at all levels to focus attention on preventive measures that may help to reduce this alarming trend. A former director of officiating for the Western Collegiate Hockey Association identified the concern among all involved in collegiate ice hockey over the growing number of head injuries. He observed an increase in safety standards for headgear during his tenure and collaboration among sports medicine professionals nationwide to enforce current mouthguard regulations (G. Shepherd, unpublished data, October 6, 1997).

[Bucky]

Let me throw this out there.

How about the Coaches taking on some of the responsibility?

I know, its a silly thought......

[wbmd]

Is it a rule in High School?

It sure is.

[wbmd]

Let me throw this out there.

How about the Coaches taking on some of the responsibility?

I know, its a silly thought......

Not a silly thought at all. The coaches definitely should be making sure each player is wearing their mouthguard properly.

[puckeyone]

The officals see it all the time , They ignore the rule, if they dont call it and the kid gets hurtand there is evidence of it{ a few years ago in the state tourny} , could the officials be liable, I think they would have to get a good lawyer to defend thier position on this which at the least would cost alot of money,
Its time the officials, coaches, A.Ds , schools and parents enforce this, all it will take is one penalty and the message will be there, Look at youth hockey they wear them , dont tell me it cant be done, do we have to wait fordeath from this

[hawkhockey]

Let me throw this out there.

How about the Coaches taking on some of the responsibility?

I know, its a silly thought......

coaches on my team make it a must we wear our mouthguards during practices and games. even during non contact drills. the rule is put it in or get off the ice. although a lot of times it is not enforced.

[wbmd]

http://www.twincities.com/prep/ci_11648 ... ck_check=1

If you click the different pictures from this story, you'll notice in some that Joey Benik stuffs his mouthguard in his mask like many others do.

Sure isn't serving its purpose there.

[Jrmom]

I get the whole mouthguard debate and am sure that they help in the concussion department. They should be enforced by ref's but if they are not the coaches should also be enforcing it. There is a bigger issue at play here. How many kids do you see wearing a helmet 'highschool' style. Bottom of cage is loose and not fitted to the face? How many other kids are removing their helmet clips?

At an Andover Bantam A game just last week, there were 3 boys on the team that had removed their helmet clips and regular helmet straps. The straps were replaced by hockey skate laces and worn loosely. That is a major concussion waiting to happen. The clips are put there for a reason, that being to keep the cage from ramming into the face upon a contact to that part of the helmet. IMHO, there is no coach worth his salt that does not practice with his team and notice stuff like that.

I hope for those kid's sake, this situation is corrected and soon!!

[wbmd]

I get the whole mouthguard debate and am sure that they help in the concussion department. They should be enforced by ref's but if they are not the coaches should also be enforcing it. There is a bigger issue at play here. How many kids do you see wearing a helmet 'highschool' style. Bottom of cage is loose and not fitted to the face? How many other kids are removing their helmet clips?

At an Andover Bantam A game just last week, there were 3 boys on the team that had removed their helmet clips and regular helmet straps. The straps were replaced by hockey skate laces and worn loosely. That is a major concussion waiting to happen. The clips are put there for a reason, that being to keep the cage from ramming into the face upon a contact to that part of the helmet. IMHO, there is no coach worth his salt that does not practice with his team and notice stuff like that.

I hope for those kid's sake, this situation is corrected and soon!!

However, and unfortunately, it probably won't be corrected anytime soon. I have seen the mouthguards stuffed in the face masks, and even hanging from the mask, for at least the last 15 years.

[lxhockey]

Any parent can pull their kid out of a game if they see he is not wearing
their mouthguard. How many parents and incidents like that would it take for the kids to know they better put it in their mouth if they want to play?

[warriors41]

I never played hockey, but i was on the football team. Our coach was exremely strict on this issue. If any of us were caught without it in it was a lot more conditioning for the entire team. That made us put pressure on each other to make sure it was in. Another difference about football is that the rule is enforced. One 10 yard penalty and a good yelling at by the coach and we got the message. Point is, there are three entities responsible, coaches, refs, and the more forgotten teamates themselves.