175 - Parental Awareness Regarding Mouthguard Use for Sports-Related Injury Prevention

Purpose: Children are most susceptible to oral injuries in permanent dentition between the ages of 7 and 12 years old and such injuries often involve teeth with incomplete root formation. The aim of this study was to assess awareness and attitudes about mouthguard use for sports-related injury prevention among parents of children receiving treatment at BronxCare pediatric dental clinic. 

Methods: Anonymous multiple-choice questionnaire was given out to the parents or legal guardians of patients between the ages of 7 to 12 years old who presented for comprehensive or periodic dental care at BronxCare Health System pediatric dentistry clinic. 

Results: A total of 254 fully completed questionnaires were collected. Preliminary results show that most parents accompanying their children to the dental clinic were females and most common reported level of education was high school, closely followed by college. When asked about the mouthguards, the majority of the respondents were not aware of the mouthguards and their function. There was very little reported familiarity about mouthguards’ use for sports - related injury prevention.  

Conclusion: Mouthguard awareness remains low among the p</span>arents of patients at BronxCare pediatric dental clinic. Such lack of knowledge may also contribute to the uncertain attitudes towards mouthguards used to prevent sports-related injuries.  It would be beneficial to the local community to implement more educational outreach to increase the awareness among the parents about mouthguard use to prevent sports-related dental trauma among children 7 to 12 years of age. 


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