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mouthguard development
It was first developed by a London dentist, Woolf Krause. It was called a Gum Shield and was made from a material called gutta percha.it was originally made for boxers. His son, Philip Krause also a dentist and amateur boxer started to make mouth guards out of Vella rubber. -
the spread of mouth guards in america
mouthguards had become widespread among boxers in America and began to find their way into dental literature. -
first acrylic mouth guard
Los Angeles dentist, Rodney O. Lilyquist, used transparent acrylic paste to form the first acrylic splint and the mouthguard was moulded to fit over the teeth which made it much less noticeable and more comfortable to wear. -
country wide identification
Basketball and football players began to wear this design which gave the mouthguard some exposure. After the Journal of the (ADA) American Dental Association picked up Lilyquist’s technique, which led to countrywide identification. -
ADA promotion
American Dental Association (ADA) started researching mouthguards and promoted their benefits to the public. -
latex usage
ADA recommended the use of latex mouthguards in all contact sports and by 1962 all high school football players in the U.S. were required to wear the mouthguards. -
injury decrease
The American College Basketball followed in 1973 and made mouthguards compulsory. Since the promotion of mouthguards, the number of dental injuries have dramatically decreased. -
Today's date
Mouthguards are a popular feature in many sports. The ADA (Australian Dental Association) recommends that anybody of any age playing a sport where there may be a risk of a blow to the face should be wearing a mouthguard. The ADA currently recommends the use of a mouthguard in 29 sports including acrobatics, basketball, bicycling, boxing, equestrian, football and etc. Interestingly, however, the number of US sports in which a mouthguard is compulsory to wear is only 4!