Sports Dentist Consensus Statement

SUMMARY

The objective of the Sports Dentist consensus statement is to provide dentists, physicians, athletic trainers, coaches, teams, athletes, school administrators and the public with guidelines for choosing a qualified Sports Dentist. This document is intended to provide a global guideline for identifying and describing a Sports Dentist. The statement will also provide the definition of a Sports Dentist and the recommended minimum standards necessary to be defined as a Sports Dentist. The statement will also describe the responsibilities and role of a Sports Dentist, who in turn, serves as a Team Dentist. This consensus statement has been developed with collaboration between the Academy for Sports Dentistry and European Association 4 Sports Dentistry. These associations are committed to providing the most current education, research, and related information in the field of Sports Dentistry.

DEFINITION OF SPORTS DENTIST

A licensed dental professional with advanced specialized training in the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral injuries and conditions associated with athletics and exercise. The sports dentist acts as a critical part of an athlete's medical team, providing emergency trauma care and supporting ongoing optimal oral health and education.

A Sports Dentist must have extensive knowledge in prevention, diagnosis and treatment of sports related dental and oral-facial injuries. A Sports Dentist must have an in-depth knowledge of sports culture and practices and be an effective communicator and educator. A Sports Dentist should be registered with their relevant professional licensing body with an active license to practice dentistry, maintain an active membership in a professionally recognized sports dentistry organization, and stay current in the sports dentistry field through continuing education programs and evidence-based research. The goal of a Sports Dentist is to enable the athlete to realize his/her full potential by providing optimal care for their oral health during and outside athletic participation.

RECOMMENDED STANDARDS OF A SPORTS DENTIST

  • Experience and continued training in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of oral injuries and conditions associated with athletics and exercise.
  • Understand and have expertise in sports-specific risks
  • Understand and have expertise in Dental and Oral-facial trauma prevention
  • Mouthguard fabrication and maintenance with clear understanding of relevant technology advances
  • Identification of any dental, postural or sport-related health/medical issues
  • Immediate trauma treatment for hard and soft tissue injuries, including:
    • Management of tooth avulsion, fracture and displacement injuries
    • Suturing techniques and hemostasis
    • Initial infection control and debridement
    • Use of non-rigid splinting techniques
  • Interim restorations
  • Guide return-to-play decisions following oral and facial injuries to ensure safe athletic re-entry
  • Awareness and management of long-term care and consequences of such care
  • Understand the roles and responsibilities of other members of the sports medicine team, including but not limited to: reporting hierarchy, contacts and coordination of care
  • Demonstrate knowledge of broader sports-related health concerns including, but not limited to:
    • Concussion, red-flag signs
    • Heat exhaustion/stroke
    • Airway compromise
  • Understand athlete medication and supplement use, pharmacology relationship to athletic use and risk
  • Be aware of and understand how to identify and address drug or substance misuse and abuse, eating disorders, or performance-enhancing drug use
  • Have a clear understanding of supplement, prescription and non-prescription medication regulations in relationship to anti-doping rules which may involve substances used to enhance performance, manage pain, or treat health conditions, divided into legal medical care and banned doping agents.
  • Maintain active membership in a professionally recognized Sports Dentistry Organization
  • Participate annually in Sports Dentistry continuing education courses
  • Understand and apply knowledge of Sports and Athlete Psychology
  • Demonstrate good educator skills through written and oral communication, including educating players, coaches, and parents on the risks of oral injuries and proper protective gear usage
  • Perform counseling or refer in areas of nutrition, substance/tobacco use and self-image

ROLE OF TEAM DENTIST

A Team Dentist is a Sports Dentist as defined above who affiliates with a Sports Team or Athletic facility to carry out the following:

  • Provide pre and post season examinations documenting and explaining current state of oral health with recommendations for pre-, in-, and post-season care
  • Follow current pre-participation evaluation guidelines
  • Be accessible 24/7 to address any dental/oral-facial emergency that may arise
  • Be knowledgeable in the latest treatment protocols for dental trauma
  • Provide the highest quality properly fitted splints and/or mouth guards as needed per sport
  • Be knowledgeable about doping protocols including anti-doping guidelines protocols and illegal substance use
  • Be knowledgeable about the psychological health of the athlete
  • Have in-depth knowledge of the specific sport culture and practices
  • Be an active member of the sports or athletic facility medical team, working in coordination with the team physician, athletic trainer and associated health care providers
  • Demonstrate understanding of the proper chain of command within the medical team
  • Provide onsite or immediate response coverage for on-field/court on competition/event days
  • Provide proper documentation of any care provided, discussed or consulted upon.
  • Determine and help coordinate post injury care including:
    • Immediate and long-term rehabilitation
    • Training and competition precautions
    • Return to play timeline parameters
  • Nutrition education as it relates to dental oral health
  • Maintaining athlete confidentiality
  • Be knowledgeable of local regulations and laws as they apply to sport
  • Understand and accommodate team and individual athlete schedules for non-emergent care
  • Understand and accommodate high priority or urgent care according to team and individual athlete schedules