tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14648115.post8190079837600869635..comments2024-03-22T03:34:53.420-04:00Comments on MedFriendly Medical Blog: The Myth that Mouthguards Prevent ConcussionsMedFriendlyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02734170040646568771noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14648115.post-64948346456430699882014-04-14T23:38:58.074-04:002014-04-14T23:38:58.074-04:00Thanks. I made the correction on the last name. Thanks. I made the correction on the last name. MedFriendlyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02734170040646568771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14648115.post-18906603047750484652014-04-14T15:15:56.828-04:002014-04-14T15:15:56.828-04:00Great article and equally applicable to other area...Great article and equally applicable to other areas of science reporting. We see it in the commercial media all the time, the headline about medical breakthroughs fits the 30 second news sound byte, but many times does not match the facts contained in the actual article.<br /><br />Our hockey league mandates the use of mouth-guards for all players 18 and under, and I've heard the concussion prevention reasoning many times as justification. From what is presented above, it probably isn't, but protection against orofacial injuries is a key benefit, therefore, the requirement for wearing them must remain.<br /><br />Just a note of correction...the coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs was Ron Wilson, not Ron Wolf (paragraph 2)CCL, Perth, Australiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16566111431313062614noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14648115.post-91293240770612752942012-11-06T00:02:29.387-05:002012-11-06T00:02:29.387-05:00As I say in my book: Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: ...As I say in my book: Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Symptom Validity Assessment and Malingering, while it is true that absence of evidence is not always evidence of absence, sometimes absence of evidence IS evidence of absence. In science, the burden of proof lies with the person trying who has a hypothesis that differs from the null hypothesis (i.e., that mouthguards do not prevent concussions). I would also add that many of the references cited in the post are from dental journals. MedFriendlyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02734170040646568771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14648115.post-22125002502424519062012-11-05T10:19:37.531-05:002012-11-05T10:19:37.531-05:00The absence of scientific literature does not mean...The absence of scientific literature does not mean that the do not help in the prevention of concussion. The main purples of a mouth guard is to protect the teeth and oro-facial structures from injury. I think if you look through the literature a different way you would be able to understand why there is a a belief that mouth guards protect from injury. The literature does show a correlation between confusion and dental trauma. If you look at the literature for mandible fractures and concussions there is a great link. Additionally, the oral surgery literature shows a correlation between confusion and dental trauma. I would recommend looking in the oral surgery literature and not the medical literature. Why? The MD's have almost no knowledge of the oral structures and teeth.We hope that will change. I warn about making the statements that would make people believe that they should not wear mouth guards because the evidence is lacking. This is the mentality that creates problems. For example, helmet usage in girls lacrosse is thought that it will make them more aggressive and therefore at risk for more injuries. Therefore, girls lacrosse do team do not wear helmets. I am just still in disbelief that parents let their girls play lacrosse with out wearing helmets. That is like riding a bike without a helmet or not wearing a seatbelt because you'll drive faster. If safety is the issue, better safe.Oral Surgeon DChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03999490719806109500noreply@blogger.com