Association of dental trauma experience and first-aid knowledge among rugby players in Malaysia

Knowledge of traumatic dental injuries and mouthguard behavior among Croatian soccer players

OBJECTIVES/AIM

Sports-related dental injuries occur frequently among athletes due to inadequate knowledge and prevention measures. The aim of the study was to assess knowledge, attitudes, and practices of active soccer players from all leagues in Croatia regarding traumatic dental injuries and the use of mouthguards.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

393 respondents completed a questionnaire-based online survey from March 2022 to April 2022. The questionnaire consisted of 37 questions divided in four sections: demographic characteristics, experience with orofacial injuries, knowledge of emergency therapeutic procedures for dental injuries, and behaviors related to the use of a mouthguard.

RESULTS

Insufficient knowledge was confirmed by a total score of 2.8 ± 2.8 points, with a possible maximum of 11. Respondents' better knowledge can be associated with educational level (p = .002), playing position (p = .046), and personally experienced injuries to the face and jaw (p ≤ .001) and teeth (p = .022). Less than 40% of respondents suffered facial and jaw injuries while playing football and 18.6% suffered dental injuries. Although most respondents (93.9%) were familiar with mouthguards and 68.9% believed that they help prevent injuries while playing football, only 16% used them.

CONCLUSION

The study revealed significant gaps in knowledge regarding dental injuries and the practice of mouthguard usage among Croatian soccer players. Therefore, it is evident that additional education is needed to prevent dental injuries and take proper procedures when taking care of them among the examined population.

Global status of knowledge for prevention and emergency management of traumatic dental injuries in sports persons and coaches: A systematic review

BACKGROUND/AIMS

Sports-related dental injuries can cause pain, disfigurement, and broken teeth which may affect the athlete's well-being and psychological status. Such injuries may also lead to the fear of re-injury and other problems. Since a delay in adequate emergency treatment can have adverse effects, it is imperative that athletes and coaches have sufficient awareness of emergency treatment options. Hence, the aim of this systematic review was to evaluate the global status of knowledge among athletes and coaches regarding the prevention and emergency management of traumatic dental injuries.

METHODS

The protocol was designed using the PRISMA guidelines and registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020184956). A broad-based search using text words and MeSH terms was performed in established databases according to a predefined strategy without any distinction of language and year of publication. Studies without details of the questionnaire, knowledge score, validity, and reliability were excluded. Data extraction was performed and risk-of-bias assessment was done by means of the Joanna Briggs Institute's critical appraisal tool.

RESULTS

Nine studies published between 2005 and 2020 were included for qualitative synthesis. They were primarily from Asia with none from North America and Australia. Most of them were cross-sectional, used convenience sampling, and were interview-based. Less than 10% of the participants in two studies had adequate knowledge of the immediate emergency management of tooth avulsion, while only 2.4% of basketball players and coaches knew that it was necessary to collect the avulsed tooth or broken tooth fragments. The overall level of knowledge was reported as poor or insufficient in all studies, with moderate or high risk-of-bias in six studies.

CONCLUSION

The knowledge regarding emergency management of TDI was found to be low globally. Along with the choice of the sport, there was a high level of variability in the study design and sampling characteristics.

Orofacial trauma and mouthguard use in Brazilian rugby union players

BACKGROUND/AIM

Rugby union represents a high-risk sport for orofacial trauma due to its impact collisions and repetitive tackles. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of orofacial trauma according to mouthguard use among a sample of Brazilian rugby union players.

METHODS

An online questionnaire was sent to the 16 best rugby union clubs in Brazil. The questionnaire contained questions about the training history of each athlete, prevalence of orofacial trauma, and details about mouthguard use. Only participants who reported using a mouthguard were selected for this analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 244 individuals were included. The prevalence of orofacial trauma was 34.4%, and 61.9% of them did not wear a mouthguard at the time of the incident. The only type of mouthguard reported was the pre-fabricated ("boil and bite" and "ready-to-wear") type. A stronger association was observed between the reason for using a mouthguard and the outcome, whereas a lower proportion of trauma was observed among individuals who claimed mandatory mouthguard use at the gym/sport (20.0%). Time since the respondent started playing rugby union and who instructed them to use a mouthguard were not associated with orofacial trauma.

CONCLUSION

Prevalence of orofacial trauma was high among this sample of rugby union players from Brazil, even with the use of pre-fabricated mouthguards. This study encourages further investigation on the use of custom-made mouthguards in rugby union and the role of coach/physical educators to reduce the prevalence of orofacial trauma.

Oral health and microbiota status in professional rugby players: A case-control study

OBJECTIVE

Elite athletes are prone to develop oral diseases, which could increase the risk for injuries. The aim of this study was to evaluate the oral health and the composition of oral microbiota of elite rugby players compared to the general population.

METHODS

We set up a case-control study by screening 24 professional rugby players (PRG) and 22 control patients (CG) for dental and gingival examinations and performed a taxonomic analysis and a predicted functional analysis of oral microbiota.

RESULTS

The Decay, Missing and Filled (DMF) teeth index (5.54 ± 6.18 versus 2.14 ± 3.01; p = 0.01) and the frequency of gingivitis (58,33% versus 13.63%) were significantly increased in PRG compared to CG. PRG were characterized by a dysbiotic oral microbiota (Shannon Index: 3.32 ± 0.62 in PRG versus 3.79 ± 0.68 in CG; p = 0.03) with an increase of Streptococcus (58.43 ± 16.84 versus 42.60 ± 17.45; p = 0.005), the main genus implicated in caries. Predicted metagenomics of oral microbiota in rugby players was suggestive of a cariogenic metagenome favourable to the development of caries.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study shows that the oral health of PRG was poorer than the general population. PRG are characterized by a dysbiotic oral microbiota with an increase of the relative abundance of Streptococcus genus, positively correlated to the weight and negatively correlated to the diversity of oral microbiota.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Dental screening should be included in the medical follow-up of professional rugby players as a part of their health management. New strategies such as using probiotics like Lactobacillus could help to control the dysbiosis of oral microbiota.