Mouthguard utilization rates during sport activities in Ankara, Turkey

The objective of this study was to determine the attitudes towards mouthguard use in Ankara, Turkey. In the first part of this study, an eight-item questionnaire was distributed to 22 coaches from 15 secondary schools randomly selected from five municipalities of Ankara, Turkey. The questionnaire sought information on how much coaches know regarding mouthguards and how often children and adolescents of the ages 11-18 use mouthguards. The second part of the study was based on the data obtained from direct interviews answered by 121 university athletes of three different sport modalities (football, ice hockey and martial arts). The purpose of this part of the study was to determine the rate of mouthguard use and the frequency and type of oral trauma in these athletes. The result of the coaches' questionnaires revealed that; none of the 11-18 years old children and adolescents used mouthguards while participating in sports. Of the coaches, 77.2% had seen orofacial trauma in this age group during sport activities and 95.5% of the coaches believed that mouthguards prevented oral injuries. Of the coaches, 72.7% reported that children and adolescents should use mouthguards in sport activities. The second part of the study showed that although all of the athletes owned mouth-formed type of mouthguards, the utilization rate was 74.4%. Of all players, 13.2% had suffered from one or more form of oral injury while not wearing mouthguards. The results show that in Turkey, the use of mouthguards has not become widespread in sports. It can be concluded that regular mouthguard use in sports should be encouraged in Turkey.