Temporomandibular Joint Disorders and Preventive Methods in Boxing Athletes

Oral and maxillofacial injuries are common in sporting activities, especially in contact combat sports. It has been stated by a number of researchers that obligatory dental and orofacial protection for all athletes have major effects in preventing injuries and associated life-long discomfort, as well as reducing the treatment costs. Boxing exposes athletes to severe head impacts and risk of brain injury, as well as disorders resulting from chronic recurrent traumas. The purpose of this report is to state the causes of temporomandibular joint disorders in boxing athletes and emphasize the importance of preventive measures and routine screening by a TMJ specialist maxillofacial surgeon. *Corresponding author: Guhan Dergi, Marmara University Faculty of Dentistry Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Turkey, Tel: 00902122535050; E-mail: [email protected] Received December 30, 2013; Accepted February 07, 2014; Published February 10, 2014 Citation: Ozcan E, Dergin G (2013) Temporomandibular Joint Disorders and Preventive Methods in Boxing Athletes. J Sports Med Doping Stud 4: 134. doi:10.4172/2161-0673.1000134 Copyright: © 2014 Ozcan E, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.