NHL Dentists Becoming Certified For NFL Concussion Device

National Hockey League team dentists

are learning of the benefits

of the Maher Mouth Guard, which has helped

National Football League players, especially those with the New

England Patriots, avoid concussions.

Chris Bourque of the Washington

Capitals, among others, was fitted for the Maher Mouth

Guard this year.

Paula Duffy, National Sports Examiner for

Examiner.com and regular contributor to The

Huffington Post, wrote an article ("If a Simple

Mouth Guard Can Prevent Concussions, Why

Isn't the NFL All Over It?") that has ignited

interest in and directed attention toward ways

to reduce or prevent the alarming number of

sports-related concussions, especially in the

National Football League.

Duffy's column in the Examiner.com

(www.Examiner.com) expressed concern for

St. Louis Rams quarterback Trent Green and

his return to the field after suffering two

concussions in one calendar year, one

especially severe.

New England Patriots team dentist Dr.

Gerald Maher of Mahercor Laboratories

(recently featured in ESPN articles) has

developed the Maher Mouth Guard. This

protective device aids in the prevention of

concussions for all athletes participating in

contact sports from professionals to youth

players.

Dr. Maher said in a 2007 Boston Globe

article that the current NFL-approved helmet

chin strap directly contributes to concussions

that arise from a blow to the jaw.

It positions the jawbone tightly against the

skull, resulting in joint cartilage derangement,

and increases the likelihood of traumatizing

the nervous system and the bone striking the

temporal lobe of the brain, increasing the

symptoms of dizziness, the sensation of

seeing stars and headaches commonly known

as a "ding."

The Maher Mouth Guard specifically

helps reduce the chances of suffering from a

concussion from a blow to the jaw-helmet

improvement focuses only on cerebral

concussion or "blows to the crown."

The construction of the articulated

retainer-like Maher mouth guard, with the

prescribed thickness and temporomandibular

joint (TMJ) alignment, was developed with

world champion boxers to correct "Glass

Jaw" syndrome found to be temporal

mandible disorder or TMD.

( h t t p : / / w w w. we b m d . c o m / a - t o - z -

guides/temporomandibular-disorders).

This individually-fitted patent-pending

mouth guard, in addition to wearing properly

fitted protective head gear and chin straps,

allows for the utmost protection from

dangerous head trauma. In fact, most pro

players who have had a history of concussions have halted any future events,

even while wearing old-style non-concussion

specific-designed helmets.

Non-corrective common custom-made, or

boil-and-bite, mouth guards reduce

neuropsychological deficits but do nothing to

identify and correct disharmony in the jaw

joint. They only "lock" the jaw into a

susceptible negative position.

Duffy's articles in the Examiner.com and

Huffington Post center on the questions

surrounding the tentative interest by the NFL

to study Dr. Maher's product, which is already

successfully used by the New England

Patriots, as shown in an online ESPN article

(http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=

Numerous high school and college

athletes, individual NFL players and a number

of boxing, hockey, and lacrosse professionals

have been relieved of recurrent concussion

due to the Maher Mouth Guard.

Recent exposure and articles have led the

U.S.military to contact Mahercor officials

about its use in protecting soldiers exposed to

improvised explosive device (IED) blasts.

Many experts in TMJ believe the chin strap

designs may be the link. A screening

procedure developed by Mahercor laboratories is another tool in determining

susceptibility to mild traumatic brain injury

(MTBI).

The government is now reviewing the

evidence and considering action

implementing such a program, which would

be cost-effective and would help protect

soldiers on patrols or when the unexpected

force of an IED blast occurs.

Mahercor Laboratories product line

(http://www.mahercorlabs.com/mouthguard.h

tm) includes an accredited DVD home study,

a required prerequisite for making the Maher

mouth guard by licensed dentists.

There are three levels of the Maher Mouth

Guard, all of which are described in detail on

the Mahercor Laboratories Web site

(www.mahercorlabs.com).