Custom Mouth Guard, Oral Armour Mouth Guard, Sport Mouth Guard - The Denture Centre - North (Launceston, Scottsdale, Deloraine)

Oral Armour mouthguards

My Personal story, Russell Brownlie – Dental Prosthetist

Our son was an outstanding athlete who aspired to greater recognition in the sporting world by way of high-quality performance. He was a member of the Tasmanian Institute of Sport for Hockey, twice representing his state, and included Basketball, Cricket, Rugby and Football in his repertoire of sporting endeavours.

One Sunday morning he was invited to train with the Tasmanian State Colts (U21) following his club training. Then ‘the phone call’ there has been an accident, (Name) …..is at the hospital, we think he may have damaged his teeth. When we arrived at the hospital we found a very distressed son with four front upper teeth missing.

I quickly arranged for two dentist colleagues to examine the possibility of replacing the teeth but after four hours of intensive work the verdict came that the damage was so severe there was no bone structure left to reposition the teeth. Devastating!

Footnote 1: Why wasn’t he wearing a mouthguard? In the weeks leading up to the accident (name) had eight teeth extracted in preparation for extensive orthodontic treatment that included an expansion screw across the palate. Together with the palatal screw and orthodontic bands/wires a traditional mouthguard was unable to be fabricated (remember this was 1985, provision now exists to cover similar scenarios)

Footnote 2: (name)..….now wears a partial upper denture that requires regular attention and occasional replacement. As good as that denture is it is not his natural teeth!

I resolved to make it my life ambition to minimise the risk to natural teeth and young people in particular through individually crafted mouthguards. I then recognised that while we previously had a basic product promotion of that product was limited without a brand name. After many options were considered ‘Oral Armour Mouthguards’ was launched. The brand name requires no explanation, neither does the slogan ‘Seatbelts for teeth’.

I consulted with Dr Brett Dorney (Sydney), then a consultant dentist with a special interest in dental trauma and was the leader of the dental team at the Sydney Olympic Games. Together with German made ‘Erkodent’ PVA mouthguard material Oral Armour Mouthguards began to evolve.

The next phase came with the choice of equipment needed to form the mouthguard.

The Short Version :)

Oral Armour Mouthguards was created in 1985 following a sporting accident that ‘knocked out’ the four upper front teeth of an aspiring athlete when he was just fifteen years old.

Quality custom mouth guard - the Oral Armour

NOT ALL MOUTHGUARDS ARE THE SAME!

The three basic types of mouthguards:

'Suck down’ under vacuum forming, heated with inconsistent distribution usually results in thick sides and very thin incisal edges where the most protection is required. The fit is barely adequate and can only be made with one layer. (single impression required)
‘Boil and Bite’ usually bought from a pharmacy or sports store. The blank requires trimming with scissors, the material placed in boiling water to soften then placed in the mouth with the wearer required to suck the hot material. The final result is usually very uncomfortable, does not fit properly and does not meet even the most basic standard of protection. (no impression required)
Thermoforming, pressure laminating technique. The material is evenly heated then drawn down on to the model under high pressure in equal thickness and a very comfortable fit. Once trimmed and decals fitted additional layers of material can be added to suit the requirement of the chosen sport. This technique is recognised as the best method of fabrication. We selected the world leading Erkodent Thermoforming Pressure Laminating machines as our equipment of choice, due in part to the quality of the engineering and the exhaustive research they conduct into their products and techniques.

Because of the superior fit the palate of an Oral Armour Mouthguard can be exposed more to aid with breathing and speech. Finally full occlusion with the lower teeth is obtained to minimise the risk of a broken jaw if a serious trauma occurs. (Upper and Lower Impressions are required, except for ‘Rookie’)

Elsewhere on the web site you will find the different styles we make to suit different ages and sports requirements.

The Oral Armour - Our custom-made multi-layer mouth guard

Site Content

Rookie (up to age 10)

This is our ‘trainer’ custom mouth guard designed to create ‘good habits’. Habits learned in early life help establish routines that will later become ‘second nature’.

For use in all sports including bike riding, skating etc.

Junior Ages 10+

Rookie (up to age 10)

This is our first fully laminated custom mouth guard. At this age athletes' coordination skills are being established, however, the risk of dental trauma through avoidable accidents is great.

Good habits should be reinforced by parents, coaches or teachers/supervisors. Wear the Oral Armour Mouth Guard at training as well as during the game.

Pro Sport

Rookie (up to age 10)

Pro Sport

Now that you are really serious about your sport you need a triple laminated Sports Mouth Guard to give the very best protection. This is our professional custom mouth guard worn by our elite athletes.