Orofacial Trauma Prevalence and Mouthguard Awareness in Basketball Players

Abstract

Introduction. Basketball players are vulnerable to distinct orofacial traumas that are possibly related to the sport itself, together with the lack of preventive measures. The aim of this investigation was to study the prevalence of orofacial trauma in the competitors of Portuguese basketball and the use/awareness of the mouthguard. Methodology. It was ran a survey using Google Form, which was completed by 285 participants. SPSS Statistics 24.0 was used to analyze the data. It was found 274 lacerations of the soft tissue, 38 dental fractures, 28 cases of tooth mobility, 24 traumas in the temporomandibular joint, 4 maxillary fractures, 3 dental avulsions and 1 mandibular fracture. Results.There was no statistically significant differences comparing the risk of orofacial trauma between males and females, game-positions or international with non-international players. Approximately 98.6% (n=281) of the participants knew about the mouthguard and only 18 used it more than “frequently”. Discussion. Portuguese basketball community may be considered one at relative risk of orofacial trauma. It seems there are not a game position and/or gender that have a higher risk to orofacial trauma. Conclusion. There is still a very low use of the mouthguard despite the awareness of it and the high number of orofacial traumas documented.