night guards

Bruxism is the clenching together of both the upper and lower teeth. Clenching can cause pressure on the muscles, tissues, and other surrounding structures of the jaw. It can cause jaw joint disorders, headaches, neck pain, jaw pain, ear pain, tense muscles and excessive wear on teeth.

Many people who clench also grind their teeth. Grinding is when you slide your teeth over each other in back and forth sideways movements.  Often grinding is subconscious behaviours done at night and can be caused by stress, anxiety, sleep disorders, and abnormal bite or teeth that are missing or crooked.  If not treated grinding can cause excessive wear and lead to long term periodontal breakdown.

A dental night guard is the most commonly used treatment method for grinding. A night guard is a horseshoe shape retainer like hard plastic appliance with shallow borders and ball clasps typically worn on the bottom.  It is designed to protect the teeth from the pressure of clenching or grinding by providing a protective layer between the upper and lower teeth.

A night guard is a simple affordable solution to protect your teeth and jaws from the damaging effects of clenching and grinding as well as reduce temporal mandibular joint problems by helping to relax the muscles in the jaw.

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