Grinding Away!
Every day I see at least one client who is suffering from occlusal disease and chooses to ignore treatment because their insurance won’t cover any of the cost. It is estimated that 40 to 60% of adult Americans clench or grind their teeth at night. Night time grinding is referred to as Nocturnal Bruxism and left untreated it can lead to excessive tooth structure wear, jaw joint pain and deterioration, gum tissue recession, loose teeth, chipping and breaking of natural teeth, leading to the need for porcelain crowns and veneers. Basically it can causes premature breakdown of the entire system.
What many people don’t realize is that it is possible to generate 4 to 5 times the amount of biting force while sleeping as compared to while you are awake. The solution is a night time splint. There are several types that can be utilized. I typically advise one of two types of hard acrylic splints, depending on what all we are trying to accomplish. The bottom line is that I see people spend thousands of dollars restoring the damage done from bruxism, yet refuse to wear a splint to prevent the problems from recurring. Often times it is the only way to predictably prevent destruction of the esthetics and the dentition.
Tags: Bruxism, grinding teeth, night time splint, occlusal disease, teeth grinding
