Night Guards in Queens, Brooklyn, New York

What are night guards?

The night guard is an acrylic device that protects the upper and lower teeth from coming in contact with each other while one sleeps. This separation protects the upper and lower teeth and minimizes the effects of grinding and clenching on oral health. Teeth grinding or bruxism causes excessive wear on teeth, resulting in enamel erosion that protects teeth against damage and decay. Night guards also absorb tension during clenching, thereby relieving discomfort, headaches, and stiffness due to teeth grinding and use.

What to expect when using night guards?

The creation of custom night guards to fit perfectly within the mouth is made possible through careful impressions taken from the mouth before the actual night guards are manufactured. It would take days for getting accustomed to wearing a night guard. Once normalized, you may even find yourself awkwardly trying to fall asleep without them! Rinse with soap and water each morning, scrub your night guard, rinse, and air-dry.

What are the benefits?

Night guards confer multiple benefits to our patients and their long-term dental health:

Improves sleep quality

Grating teeth and jaw clenching interfere with sound and restorative sleep. Jaw-clenching is even correlated with snoring, a known sleep-disruptor. Poor sleep quality can increase the risk of different diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure. The utilization of a night guard eliminates the various setbacks to your sleep; these guards will help reposition the jaw so that airway patency is enhanced for better breathing.

Protects your teeth

A night guard is a great protective agent for your teeth. Clenching and grinding can do just about irreversible damage to the teeth. Constant contact between these two-hard surfaces can dull the teeth's enamel and put stress on them that could result in cracks or fractures.
Low enamel poses an even higher risk for tooth decay and cavity formation. Untreated cavities can worsen into infected pockets and severely affect the health of the gums.

With compromised enamel health, tooth sensitivity against hot and cold also increases.

Offers affordable and convenient treatment

One of the greatest advantages of having a night guard as a management tool against teeth grinding and jaw clenching is that it is both economical and convenient. A night guard is also a less invasive and cheaper alternative compared to some other methods of treating jaw clenching, such as jaw surgery.