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Another night guard question

M

MountainMama

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Jul 1, 2018
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These things always happen on Thursday/Fridays when my dentist is closed. ?

Yesterday at my sons appointment, the dentist’s assistant gave me my new nightguard. She had me pop it in really quick. It was really tight on the front but fit better on the back teeth. I still had a terrible time getting it out again, as it would not come off my front teeth easily. She told me to try it over the weekend and let them know if there are issues.

I tried to wear it last night. It felt so tight on my front tooth and lateral incisors that it made me worry about my front tooth implant.

So this is probably a very stupid question, but here goes:

Could the nightguard being tight and feeling pressure against the implant crown cause any damage to it, long term? I ended up taking it out as I was worried it was going to cause it to shift slightly and loosen when I clench. I know I need to try it to see if makes my teeth hurt but I don’t want to hurt the implant.
 
Nope it won't hurt the implant, BUT it's not ideal if it's putting heavy pressure on the area, it could cause slight drifting of the tooth (a bit like having an orthodontic appliance working on it) which could mess the bite up a bit in the long term. Assuming you were wearing it for long periods at a time e.g. overnight.

Get it adjusted next week when they're open.
 
Thank you Gordon! I will call them next week, but I will also try wearing it short periods during the day to see if it hurts my teeth also.
 
You could try that, it won't do any harm.
 
Thanks. I know that the front is tight, but last time it made the whole left side hurt. I want to make sure there are not any other spots that I can’t feel because I am hyper focused on the front teeth.
 
Always a good idea. I used to bore students stupid by banging on about this when patients came back to have dentures adjusted.
"Don't just look at the bits the patient tells you about, look at the whole mouth".
 
Well, I called this morning and the tech called me back a little later. She said the dentist said to try putting it in hot water for a few minutes then putting it in, and keep doing that a few times, and see if that helps. If it still is uncomfortable later in the week, call back and they will get me in to adjust it.
I asked her about it moving my front teeth and she said it shouldn’t because it fits tightly in the back and front. That doesn’t seem right, because if it has pressure in any way, it could move the teeth even slightly, right? Tight in front may mean a slight gap in back?
 
Is it a soft guard? The hot water trick might work then.
You're right a bit, it doesn't necessarily mean that there's a gap in the back, but generally applying force to a surface stimulates osteoclast activity and causes some bone remodelling and tooth movement. Given how sensitive the human bite can be, even a very slight movement isn't hugely desirable.
 
It is a hard guard with a soft lining. The lining is very thin. I tried it last night and wore it all night. It did seem to help some, as it made it easier to get on and off. It is definitely not as tight as it was.

Is it a good sign that my front teeth were not sore this morning? They felt a little odd, like pressure was released but not sore like the left side was when I wore the other one. It didn’t hurt to take it off and it came off with just a little tugging.

My bite is so messed up already that I don’t want to make it worse, nor shift the implant at all. The nightguard did seem to aggravate my AFP, as the gums around the implant are really painful today (not red or swollen…more like phantom pain).

I am worried about movement of the implant crown. The nightguard seems to put pressure on the bottom of the front teeth, so would that possibly shift my teeth (and implant) inward over time? Change the angle of the teeth? Or should I not worry if the teeth don’t hurt after wearing it? The assistant said the nightguard is meant to be tight.
 
Try it again then :)
If it's not causing discomfort then it's fairly unlikely to cause the teeth to shift.
 
Great, thank you! I am such a worrier. I will give it another dunk in the hot water today. I wore it last night again and it didn’t hurt but was uncomfortable again this morning after taking it out, like my teeth were “loose” but they were not. Maybe another dunk will do it.
 
You should ask your oral surgeon about the front tooth implant and the night guard. I'm sure he doesn't want his work effected by the night guard.
 
You should ask your oral surgeon about the front tooth implant and the night guard. I'm sure he doesn't want his work effected by the night guard.
The oral surgeon that did that implant is in a different state since we moved. My new oral surgeon, who has put in a lower molar implant, was the one who suggested a new nightguard. He told me to talk to the dentist about it.
 
I woke up today without pain again, just the weird feeling in my teeth again. Then throughout the morning, I have developed pain in my upper left canine and lateral incisor. It is a weird nagging pain, kind of aches but feels deep, like above the root. It doesn’t hurt to bite but the tooth feels weird too.
I don’t usually have atypical facial pain on the left side. In fact, most pain on that side is attributed to the TMJ pain. So I don’t know what to think. Maybe the night guard? Again, dentist is closed until next week. They used to be open Fridays, but due to labor shortage have closed early Thursday and all day Friday now.

The fact that my teeth are not sore makes me think it is not the nightguard. Am I right in that thinking? Or should I go back to my old one again until I can seen? I know they are short staffed and getting in will be an issue. I also hate to keep trying the hot water trick for fear I will ruin it.
 
I think it is AFP, as the pain intensified and is now burning behind my central incisor as well. Ugh! I am going to go back to my old nightguard tonight and hope the pain goes away. I think the new nightguard triggers the AFP. I have never had it on the left side in that spot before.
 
That's probably a good idea. BTW you won't damage the guard with hot water.
 
That's probably a good idea. BTW you won't damage the guard with hot water.
Oh, good to know! Thank you!
The pain is gone this morning. So it was AFP, just way worse than I usually have.
 
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@Gordon, I tried the nightguard again last night. No pain while wearing it, and no pain while removing it. However, about an hour after taking it out, I am getting weird pain like from the AFP in the upper canine and lateral incisor on the left again.

Do I have any options with this nightguard? It wasn’t cheap and I hate to not be able to use it, but will adjustments even help or just cause pressure somewhere else that will be an endless process. My last nightguard was adjusted so much that it isn’t even fitted anymore.
 
Looking back, it seems that it hasn't been adjusted by a professional yet? If so then at least one adjustment would be sensible. It's rare for anything like this to not need a bit of tweaking.
 
Looking back, it seems that it hasn't been adjusted by a professional yet? If so then at least one adjustment would be sensible. It's rare for anything like this to not need a bit of tweaking.
Thank you. It has not been adjusted yet. My dentist acted like it would be really difficult to adjust it. The last one hurt and he just had it remade. I will call tomorrow and see what can be done. I can’t deal with it the way it is.
 
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