Title |
No Strong Evidence Exists For The Use Of Mouth Guards To Prevent Concussions |
Clinical Question |
In persons playing sports, does mouth guard use help prevent concussions compared to no mouth guard use? |
Clinical Bottom Line |
No strong evidence exists for the use of mouth guards to prevent concussions. This is based on a systematic review of the literature concerning 51 studies. |
Best Evidence |
|
PubMed ID |
Author / Year |
Patient Group |
Study type
(level of evidence) |
19433427 | Benson/2009 | Various athletes in different sports in 51 studies | Systematic review of the literature | Key results | No strong evidence exists for the use of mouth guards or face shields to reduce concussion risk. | 16162986 | Barbic/2005 | College athletes in football and rugby | Randomized Controlled Trial | Key results | Concussions were not significantly decreased by use of the WIPSS Brain-Pad mouth guard as compared to other types of mouth guards. | |
Evidence Search |
("Mouth Protectors"[Mesh]) AND "Brain Concussion"[Mesh] |
Comments on
The Evidence |
The Benson paper is not a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. There was a detailed search for relevant trials, and the individual studies were assessed for validity. 51 trials were reviewed. No meta-analysis was done. A multi-center, cluster-randomized, controlled trial compared the WIPPS Brain-Pad mouth guard against the mouthguard of choice was reported by Barbic. |
Applicability |
It cannot be determined if the patient would see reduce concussion risk from a mouth guard. |
Specialty |
(General Dentistry) (Dental Hygiene) |
Keywords |
mouthguard, concussions
|
ID# |
2256 |
Date of submission |
04/25/2012 |
E-mail |
reaganj@livemail.uthscsa.edu |
Author |
J.C. Reagan |
Co-author(s) |
|
Co-author(s) e-mail |
|
Faculty mentor |
Edward F. Wright, DDS, MS |
Faculty mentor e-mail |
WrightE2@uthscsa.edu |
|
|
Basic Science Rationale
(Mechanisms that may account for and/or explain the clinical question, i.e. is the answer to the clinical question consistent with basic biological, physical and/or behavioral science principles, laws and research?) |
None available | |
|
Comments and Evidence-Based Updates on the CAT
(FOR PRACTICING DENTISTS', FACULTY, RESIDENTS and/or STUDENTS COMMENTS ON PUBLISHED CATs) |
None available | |