Is My Mouthguard Causing Decay?

I am in my mid-twenties and have never had a cavity. I did get a night guard a few months ago and now have have what my dentist called incipient caries on three teeth. He insists that because they haven’t reached the dentin that we should just wait and watch. I’m terrified that they are going to turn into full-blown cavities. I’ve looked up some information to see if there is anything I can do to prevent that from happening. Some things that came up in my search are Curodont, resin infiltration, resin sealants, and silver diamine fluoride. Do you know if any of these will help me? Also, can you tell me if my mouthguard is causing these problems?

Cindy

Dear Cindy,

I’m absolutely delighted to see how responsible you are with your oral health care. Keep up this great work and you’ll never have a dental emergency. Above is a picture of how white spot lesions progress. On the left, you see a white spot caused by acid from bacteria leaching out the minerals and leaving a white spot as a result. The middle image, the lesion has grown becoming a bit chalky and soft. With the image on the right the caries have moved far enough into the enamel to remove the support and open it up to a full-blown cavity.

If the spots on your teeth are like the one on the left, it can still be re-mineralized. The progressions on the middle and right require restorations. Though, of course, the faster you catch it the less needs to be done. Let’s assume you’ve got the situation on the left. There are ways to strengthen that enamel. Your first point of defense (aside from brushing and flossing) is your saliva. It is a great fighter of decay. Limit any snacking you do so it has time to work. Then, make sure your toothpaste contains fluoride. You can also ask your dentist for a prescription of a concentrated fluoride gel to use. These absorb into the surface of the enamel and help draw in minerals in your saliva to help repair the lesions.

The treatments you mentioned would all need to be done in the dentist’s office. Curodont does the same thing as fluoride. Resin infiltration involves etching your teeth, so that wouldn’t be my first choice. Silver diamine fluoride will work but creates a dark stain. The resin sealants are meant for prevention before decay even starts.

Now, for your question about your mouthguard. As long as you brush your teeth before putting on the mouthguard for the evening, it will not lead to decay. But, if you put it on without brushing your teeth, then your saliva can’t get to the teeth as easily and it won’t be able to fight the bacteria you’ve left on there.

I hope this helps.
This blog is brought to you by a friendly San Antonio Endodontist, Dr. Scott Janse.
Click here to learn about internal tooth bleaching.