They are removable dental appliances carefully moulded to fit the upper and lower arches of teeth. They are typically made of heat cure acrylic resin, soft acrylic or light cure composite or vinyl splints may be made more quickly and cheaply but are not as durable and are more commonly made for short term use.
They generally cover all the teeth of upper and lower arch but partial coverage is sometime used. Maxillary splints are more common although various situations favour mandibular splints.
Soft splints come in 3 sizes 1mm,2mm,or 2mm with renforced posterior teeth which will create 4mm on molar surface. They are used for children because normal growth changes fit of hard splints. Stabilizing/Michigan type is generally flat against the opposing teeth and jaw muscle relaxation while repositional occlusal splints are used to reposition the jaw to improve occlusion.
They are even used in patients with MPDS and TMJ pain disorder to reduce the muscle load and relax them.
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