Custom sports mouthguards

A substantial share of traumatic dental injuries are sports-related, and a large proportion of those involve the upper front teeth of children and teenagers.

A knocked-out or fractured front tooth is not a one-off cost. It is a lifetime of replacing whatever is put there in its place. A custom mouthguard is the cheapest dental work you will ever pay for.

From $275 for a single-coloured mouthguard.

What a mouthguard actually does

It fits over your teeth and absorbs and redistributes the force of an impact so it is not delivered to a single tooth. It also cushions the soft tissues — lips and cheeks — against being driven onto the edges of the teeth, and provides some protection against the lower jaw being slammed into the upper.

An injury to the face can result in the loss of one or more teeth, broken or chipped teeth, jaw fracture and lacerations to the lips, cheeks and tongue.

It is worth being accurate about the limits. A mouthguard substantially reduces the risk and severity of dental injury. It does not eliminate it, and it is not a helmet.

What it does not do

It does not prevent concussion. The claim is sometimes made and the evidence does not support it
It does not protect the nose, cheekbones or eye socket
It does not make a tooth unbreakable — a hard enough impact still does damage, usually less of it
It does nothing at all in a kit bag, which is the most common reason one fails

Why a lost front tooth is so expensive

A knocked-out adult tooth that cannot be saved is replaced, and every replacement has a finite life. An implant crown is typically replaced every ten to fifteen years; a bridge similar; a denture sooner. Someone who loses a front tooth at fifteen is looking at replacing that restoration repeatedly across sixty or seventy years, plus the bone grafting that often becomes necessary along the way.

There is a second cost that is easy to miss. An implant cannot usually be placed in a teenager, because the jaw is still growing and an implant does not move with it. That often means a temporary replacement for several years first, and then the permanent one — so the bill starts early and does not stop.

That is the comparison to hold in mind, rather than the cost of the guard against the cost of a sports-store one.

Custom-fitted versus over-the-counter

This is the part worth understanding before you buy one at a sports store.

A custom mouthguard is made from an impression or digital scan of your own teeth. It fits the contours of your teeth and gums exactly, which means it stays put, it is thick where it needs to be, and you can speak and breathe normally while wearing it. Because it does not shift, it distributes impact the way it was designed to.

Stock and boil-and-bite guards are moulded to an approximation of your mouth. They commonly loosen during play, and a guard that has been spat out on the sideline is protecting nobody. Players tend to clench them in place, which interferes with breathing and speech, and the material distorts with repeated use.

The cost difference is real. So is the difference in what happens on impact.

	Custom	Boil-and-bite
Fit	Exact	Approximate
Stays in during play	Yes	Often not
Speech and breathing	Largely unaffected	Impeded
Thickness where needed	Controlled	Uneven
Lifespan	A season or more	Distorts quickly
Works with braces	Made for them	No
Cost over a season	Higher once	Lower, repeatedly

Which sports

The Australian Dental Association recommends a custom-fitted mouthguard for:

AFL · Basketball · Boxing · Cricket · Hockey · Ice hockey · Gymnastics · Lacrosse · Martial arts · Rugby · Soccer · Squash · Volleyball · Water polo · Wrestling

Contact sports are the obvious cases. Basketball, soccer and cricket produce more dental injuries than people expect — an elbow, a ball or a collision does not need to be a tackle to cost you a tooth.

The pattern is worth naming, because the sports people assume are safe are the ones that catch them out.

How injuries tend to happen	Typical sports
Elbows and heads at close quarters	Basketball, netball, soccer, water polo
A hard ball at speed	Cricket, hockey, baseball
A stick or bat	Hockey, lacrosse, cricket
Deliberate contact	AFL, rugby, martial arts, boxing
Falls onto a hard surface	Skateboarding, BMX, gymnastics, skating

Wear it at training as well as matches. A significant share of injuries happen at training, where players are least likely to be wearing protection.

Getting one made

Appointment. An impression or digital scan of your upper teeth, and usually a bite record. Takes about fifteen minutes.
Laboratory. Your guard is fabricated by an Australian dental laboratory to those records.
Fit. You come back to have it seated and checked. It should sit firmly without you biting to hold it, and you should be able to speak.

Ready in a few days. Available in a wide range of single colours and colour combinations — club colours are a common request, and a guard a child actually likes is a guard a child actually wears.

Book before the season starts. Fabrication takes a few days and the week before round one is the busiest.

Choosing the guard

A few decisions get made at the fitting appointment, and it helps to have thought about them.

Thickness. Heavier contact sports warrant a thicker, often multi-layered guard. More material is more protection and slightly more bulk; the trade-off is worth discussing for the sport you actually play
Colour. Dark colours hide wear and tear; bright colours are easier to find on a grass sideline. Clear is the easiest to lose
A name on it. Worth doing for school and club players, because identical guards get mixed up constantly
Braces or a plate. Say so up front — the construction is different
Two guards is not extravagant for someone playing several sports a week; one lives permanently in the bag

Wearing it

The first few sessions feel bulky and speech is slightly affected. That settles quickly. It should stay in place without clenching; if you have to hold it with your teeth, it needs adjusting.

If it makes you gag, tell us. The back edge can usually be trimmed without compromising protection.

The practical difficulty is rarely the guard. It is the habit. Guards get worn when they live in the kit bag rather than at home, when coaches expect them at training as well as on match day, and when the player picked the colour themselves.

Children, and why they need replacing

A child's mouth is a moving target. Teeth erupt, jaws grow, and a guard that fitted last season may not fit this one. Bring it to your child's six-monthly check-up and we will assess the fit.

Expect to replace a child's mouthguard more often than an adult's — typically each season or as the dentition changes. Growing out of one is not a failure of the guard.

If your child wears braces, tell us. Orthodontic mouthguards are constructed differently to accommodate the appliance and allow for tooth movement, and a standard guard is not appropriate. Wearing a guard is more important with braces, not less, because brackets can lacerate lips on impact.

Children with front teeth that sit forward, or who cannot comfortably close their lips over them, are at higher risk of injury than average. It is one of the reasons an orthodontic opinion sometimes comes up earlier than parents expect.

When to replace it

It no longer clicks firmly into place
It has become thin, torn or chewed through
Teeth have moved, erupted or been treated since it was made
It has been left in a hot car and distorted
For a growing child, at least each season
After any significant impact — a guard that has taken a real hit has done its job and may have deformed doing it

Caring for it

Rinse in cold water before and after use, and brush gently with a soft brush
Store in its ventilated case, dry — not in a hot car, and not in a kit bag in the sun; heat distorts it permanently
Do not chew it, which is the fastest way to ruin one
Keep it away from dogs, which is a more common loss than you would think
Never use boiling water or a dishwasher on a custom guard

A sports mouthguard is not a night splint

They look similar and are not interchangeable. A sports guard is soft and made to absorb a single large impact. A night splint is hard and made to redistribute sustained grinding force over hours, and a soft guard worn nightly can make grinding worse. If you need both, you need two appliances. See occlusal splints and night guards.

If a tooth is knocked out anyway

Time matters more than anything. Pick the tooth up by the crown, never the root; do not scrub it; rinse briefly in milk or saliva rather than water; put it back in the socket if you can and bite gently on a cloth; otherwise keep it in milk. Then seek care immediately.

What happened	On the sideline	How urgent
Adult tooth knocked out	Replant it, or keep it in milk	Immediately — minutes matter
Baby tooth knocked out	Do not replant it	Same day, but do not put it back
Tooth pushed out of position	Do not force it back	Same day
Tooth chipped	Keep the fragment in milk	Within a day or two
Tooth loose but in place	Soft food, avoid biting on it	Same day
Jaw painful, bite feels wrong	Support the jaw, do not chew	Urgent — possible fracture
Any loss of consciousness	Follow concussion protocol first	Medical care before dental

Full instructions are on our broken or knocked-out tooth page. It is worth reading before the season, not after.

Cost and claiming

From $275 for a single colour, with colour combinations and orthodontic designs quoted at the appointment. Most extras policies cover mouthguards under general dental, often generously, because funds would rather pay for one than for the injury. HICAPS on-the-spot claiming; Afterpay and Zip accepted. See payment options.

Some clubs and schools organise group fittings. Ask us if yours is interested.

Questions we are asked

Can I wear it with a retainer? Not at the same time. Tell us about any orthodontic appliance so the guard is made correctly.

Upper or lower? Upper in almost all cases. Lower guards are made occasionally for specific bites.

Will it stop concussion? No. That claim is sometimes made and the evidence does not support it. A mouthguard protects teeth and soft tissue.

How long does one last? An adult guard often several seasons; a child's usually one.

Can I talk with it in? Yes, with a custom guard, after a short adjustment period.

My child has only some adult teeth through — is it worth it yet? Yes. The upper front adult teeth arrive around seven to nine and are the ones most often injured. A guard made now will need replacing sooner, which is the cost of protecting the teeth during the years they are most exposed.

Can you make one from a guard I already have? No — it is made from an impression or scan of your teeth, which is the whole point of the fit.

Do I need one for non-contact training? For most sports, a guard worn at every session is the habit worth building. Injuries at training are common precisely because protection is treated as optional there.

What if it is uncomfortable after a week? Bring it in. Most discomfort is a small adjustment, and an uncomfortable guard is one that stops being worn.

Victorian Dental Group is a general dental practice in Malvern East and holds no specialist registration. Where an injury needs specialist care we will refer you and, where it is urgent, help you get there.

Victorian Dental Group — 291 Wattletree Road, Malvern East VIC 3145 · (03) 9088 5808 · Monday to Friday, 8:00am–5:00pm · book online

This page is general information and does not replace advice from a registered dental practitioner about your own circumstances. Please see our Disclaimer.

What does a sports mouthguard do?

It cushions and spreads the force of a blow to the mouth, reducing the risk of knocked-out, broken or displaced teeth, cuts to the lips and cheeks, and injury to the jaw. It reduces risk — it does not remove it. No mouthguard can prevent every injury.

Why choose a custom-made mouthguard over one from a sports store?

A custom guard is made on a model of your own teeth, so it stays put without being clenched, covers the teeth and gum properly, and is made to a thickness appropriate to the sport. Boil-and-bite and stock guards are bulkier where they are not needed and thinner where they are, work loose during play, and interfere more with speaking and breathing — which is why people take them out, and a guard in your pocket protects nothing.

Which sports should one be worn for?

Any sport with a risk of contact with another player, equipment, or the ground — Australian rules, rugby codes, soccer, hockey, basketball, netball, cricket (particularly wicketkeeping and batting), boxing and martial arts, water polo, lacrosse, skateboarding and BMX. It should be worn at training as well as on match day, since a substantial share of injuries happen there.

How is one made?

An impression or digital scan is taken, the guard is made in a dental laboratory from layered thermoplastic, and it is fitted and checked for comfort and the bite. It usually takes two appointments a week or two apart, so allow time before the season starts rather than the week it begins. A range of colours is available, including team colours.

How often does a mouthguard need replacing?

For a child or teenager, often every twelve months or sooner — teeth are still erupting and the jaws growing, and a guard that no longer fits does not protect properly. For an adult with a stable bite, several seasons is reasonable, provided it is checked before each season for perforation, tearing or thinning where it has been bitten through. Have it checked at your routine dental visit.

Can a mouthguard be worn with braces?

Yes, but not a standard one. A guard made for braces is designed with space for the brackets and to accommodate the teeth moving during treatment, and it protects the lips and cheeks from the brackets in a collision. A mouthguard made before braces were fitted will not fit over them and should not be forced. Tell us if orthodontic treatment is planned or under way.

Can I use a sports mouthguard for grinding at night?

No. A sports mouthguard is designed to absorb a single heavy impact, not to withstand hours of sustained clenching — it wears through quickly and the soft material can encourage more clenching. Night-time grinding is managed with a hard acrylic occlusal splint, which is a different appliance made for that purpose.

How do I look after it?

Rinse in cold water before and after use, clean it with a toothbrush and mild soap, and let it dry before storing it in its ventilated case. Keep it out of hot water, direct sun and the car — heat distorts the fit permanently. Bring it to dental appointments so the fit can be checked against any new fillings or crowns.

What should I do if a tooth is knocked out?

For an adult tooth: hold it by the crown, not the root, and do not scrub it. If it is dirty, rinse it briefly in milk or saline. Put it straight back in the socket if you can and bite gently on a cloth; if you cannot, keep it in milk or in the person's own saliva — never in water — and get to a dentist or emergency department immediately. Minutes matter. Do not reimplant a knocked-out baby tooth, as it can damage the adult tooth developing beneath. Phone Victorian Dental Group on (03) 9088 5808, 291 Wattletree Road, Malvern East VIC 3145, Monday to Friday 8:00am to 5:00pm, or attend an emergency department outside those hours.