Evaluation of the Effects on Human Performance Characteristics and Peak Head Accelerations With the Use of Various Intra-Oral Appliances

Various studies have investigated the relationship between the mandibular position and its affect on human performance characteristics. To maintain the jaw in an optimal position Mandibular Orthopedic Repositioning Appliances (MORA) have been produced. A protective mouthguard is an appliance worn in the mouth which helps prevent injuries to the teeth, lips, cheek, tongue, and jaw as a result of impact. More recently, it has been hypothesized that mouthguards reduce the risk of concussion by attenuating the impact to the jaw rather than transferring the force to the brain. Currently, there are no standards for testing protective mouthguards. Such a test would prove useful to determine maximum acceleration levels of the head.

The aim of this study is to (1) quantify the effectiveness of repositioning the jaw on strength and aerobic potential as well as (2) to determine if a protective mouthguard can give the same affects of a MORA device. In addition (3) a test protocol will be established for the evaluation of mouthguard performance. The data collected will show how well the EDGE^TM Protection performs versus other consumer available mouthguards on the criteria of attenuation of peak head accelerations. After statistical analysis, it was found on a 95% confidence level that the MORA and the protective mouthguard with MORA attributes increase a user’s strength. On certain intervals of the aerobic testing there was evidence that the MORA does have an influence on human performance.