Participation in sport carries an increased risk of sustaining dental trauma which can be reduced by the use of a mouthguard. Mouthguards work by dissipating the force of impact, thus reducing the force which is transferred to the dentition. There are different types of mouthguard available which vary in design, costs and the level of protection provided. This article aims to review the use of mouthguards in sport, the common barriers to their use and also the different types of mouthguards and their characteristics.

Introduction: Research has shown that orthodontic patients are more likely to retain information presented in an audiovisual format. However, there has been little research on the effectiveness of audiovisual information provided through different routes such as the Internet. This parallel-group randomized controlled trial assessed whether provision of audiovisual information on the YouTube (Google, San Bruno, Calif) Web site to orthodontic patients undergoing fixed appliance treatment results in improved patient knowledge when compared with conventional methods of information provision. The effects of sex and ethnicity were also investigated.

During the mixed-dentition stage of dental development, dentists may encounter patients with first permanent molars considered to have a poor long-term prognosis. In this situation, extraction of the tooth and space closure or use of the extraction space for future orthodontic treatment should be considered. The aim of this article is to give guidelines about treatment planning for patients who have first molars with a poor prognosis during the mixed-dentition stage.

• The results of this study suggest that the 'golden proportion' should not be a single value but rather a range.• Hypodontia patients showed a preference to a longer lateral incisor as compared to the other groups.• What is aesthetically pleasing to the clinician and patient may not be the same.• Communication and presentation of all diagnostic information to the patient is essential when undertaking treatment planning. VERIFIABLE CPD PAPERThe influence of varying maxillary lateral incisor dimensions on perceived smile aesthetics Objective The aim of this study was to determine the infl uence of varying the dimensions of the maxillary lateral incisors on perceived smile aesthetics. Design Clinical study. Setting Postgraduate dental teaching hospital. Methods A photograph of a female smile displaying only the lips and teeth was digitally altered. First, the width of the maxillary lateral inci sors, in proportion to the central incisor, was altered at 5% intervals to produce six images (52%, 57%, 62% [the 'golden proportion'], 67%, 72% and 77%). In a second group, the length of the lateral incisor was altered at 0.5 mm increments to produce five images with the lateral incisor 0.5 mm, 1 mm, 1.5 mm, 2 mm and 2.5 mm shorter than the adjacent central incisor. The photos were ranked from 'most attrac tive' to 'least attractive' by 41 hypodontia patients, 46 non-hypodontia 'control' patients and 30 dentists. Results: The 67% followed by the 72% lateral-to-central width proportions were the 'most preferred' by all groups. A maxillary lateral incisor that is 1-1.5 mm shorter than the central incisor was the 'most popular' maxillary lateral incisor length. The very short and very long maxillary lateral incisor was consistently perceived as 'least attractive'. Conclusion There is no evidence to suggest that the golden propor tion should be considered the ideal aesthetic standard when creating space for the replacement of missing lateral incisors.

No abstract