# Dental damage/work



## malteaser14 (Apr 3, 2012)

Hi I started training 8months ago. Recently some of the guys were discussing how much their dental work had cost them. Have any of you seriously damaged your teeth whislt training/Sparring/Competing? And if you have was it with or without a mouthguard?


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## Bill Mattocks (Apr 3, 2012)

malteaser14 said:


> Hi I started training 8months ago. Recently some of the guys were discussing how much their dental work had cost them. Have any of you seriously damaged your teeth whislt training/Sparring/Competing? And if you have was it with or without a mouthguard?



No damage so far.  I wear a mouth guard whilst competing in point-sparring.  In the dojo, I do not wear a mouth guard, but haven't been punched in the mouth (yet).  Roughly 4 years of training so far.


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## dancingalone (Apr 3, 2012)

I have an implant for one of my canines.  It was knocked out by gyaku-tsuki I took in bare hands sparring.  No mouth guard which was stupid but I'm not sure one would have a made a difference.  It was a great punch that caught me totally flat-footed and I took all of the force straight on.


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## puunui (Apr 9, 2012)

dancingalone said:


> I have an implant for one of my canines.



You didn't want to go with a bridge? I heard that implants or any metal in the mouth really can lead to arthritis later on. I have crowns but they are all porcelain. Or at least that is what they told me.


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## ETinCYQX (Apr 9, 2012)

I've bit a few holes in my tongue rolling. Never broken a tooth though

I also don't pay for dental work because of my insurance.


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## K-man (Apr 9, 2012)

puunui said:


> You didn't want to go with a bridge? I heard that implants or any metal in the mouth really can lead to arthritis later on. I have crowns but they are all porcelain. Or at least that is what they told me.


I've had crowns with metal posts since 1961. Haven't copped arthritis yet and when I do, I think I'll probably just put it down to old age.     :asian:


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## dancingalone (Apr 9, 2012)

puunui said:


> You didn't want to go with a bridge? I heard that implants or any metal in the mouth really can lead to arthritis later on. I have crowns but they are all porcelain. Or at least that is what they told me.



Honestly I just went with whatever the oral surgeon suggested.  This was what he recommended.  I figured he knew his business since he had good references from several dentists I consulted including my regular one.

It's been about 17 years now since I've had the implant put in.  It's still going strong with no problems and my dentist checks it every time I visit his office for a cleaning.  I'm pleased with it - it's a lot less troublesome than a bridge although I suppose I would have found a way to live with one if that was the way I needed to go.


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## ChrisT (Jul 24, 2012)

I have always worn a mouth guard. I guess it saved my teeth, especially in one situation. I had a punch in the face near my mouth and felt the pressure days later, I guess if I had not worn a mouth guard, the dentist would have been my best friend for some time...so I think wearing it can truly save trouble even though some of my fellows often complain about it. Generally I believe in all the health and safety stuff - I knew a guy who forgot to tape the earring and got hit there which resulted in a major injury of his ear. not so nice.


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## Bill Mattocks (Jul 24, 2012)

Bill Mattocks said:


> No damage so far.  I wear a mouth guard whilst competing in point-sparring.  In the dojo, I do not wear a mouth guard, but haven't been punched in the mouth (yet).  Roughly 4 years of training so far.



Updating my earlier comments.  Got a tooth knocked out last week in the dojo.  It was a molar in the bottom, it had started to disintegrate on its own anyway, and was falling apart.  An ichi knuckle finished the job.  Didn't really hurt or bleed, that's how far gone it already was.  No big deal.


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## Gnarlie (Jul 25, 2012)

One of our students lost a front tooth to an elbow strike, through a mouthguard.  Luckily his brother is a cosmetic dentist and sorted it out post-haste. 

It's my understanding that a mouthguard is to prevent damage to the teeth, tongue and brain caused by the jaw snapping closed when hit from below, e.g. with an uppercut. 

Versus a frontal or side impact the positive effects of a mouthguard besides stopping the inside of the lips and cheeks getting cut are minimal.  When struck with a sufficiently small surface area, those pearlies are still coming out. 

Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2


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