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badgolferman badgolferman is offline
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Default How to seal a mouth guard?

Jennifer Murphy wrote:

This is an odd request, but this forum has come up with amazing
solutions to odd requests so many times...

I have fairly severe bruxism (teeth grinding). I've fractured several
teeth over the years. My previous dentist gave me a standard mouth
guard. I continued to fracture teeth. My current dentist recommended a
device called an "NTI-TSS" (nociceptive trigeminal inhibitor tension
suppression system). It's a tiny mouth guard that fits over just the
front teeth. The theory is that the front teeth resist clenching
whereas the back teeth are triggerred to clench when they sense
something to chew (biting vs chewing).

http://www.kellerlab.com/115/products/nti-tss-plus.php

In any case, my NTI is starting to exhibit an unpleasant odor. I think
the problem is that it has developed some tiny cracks between the hard
outer shell that stop the clenching and the inner, softer material
that fits snugly around the teeth. These cracks are now serving as
breeding grounds for bacteria. This problem didn't occur for the
first several years I had the device, which is why I think it is
related to a deterioration of the seal.

I've tried soaking it in alcohol and various antibacterial rinses.
This cures the problem for a few days. I would like a more permanent
solution.

Here's my question. Is there a material that I can use to seal the
whole device? I'm thinking of some type of acrylic that would seep
into all of the cracks and form a barrier to the bacteria getting
back in there. I'd soak it in alcohol to kill the bacteria than apply
the seal.

Whatever it is would have to be safe to have in my mouth every night.

If that fails, I guess I'll go get a new device. They are about $500,
so if I can make this one last longer, I'd like to.

Thanks for any suggestions.


I don't have an answer for you but this website may be useful in how to
keep the thing clean.
http://www.ehow.com/way_5665486_home...outhguard.html