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The management and prevention of dental trauma is an integral part of the medical services provided at major athletic events. This paper reviews the organization and delivery of the dental services provided at the 1989 Canada Games. The nature, incidence and management of the dental problems reported in the participant population of 3,411 athletes are also described. During the two-week competition, 15 participants were assessed and treated for various dental conditions, including hard- and soft-tissue injury of the oral cavity, and temporomandibular joint sprain. The sports with the highest incidence of dental injury for the male population were wrestling (one per cent) and basketball (0.8 per cent). For the female population, these sports were basketball (2.5 per cent) and field hockey (1.3 per cent). The dental services provided during the games included emergency assessment and treatment, fabrication of mouthguards, and in-service education to medical team members.

When a large number of athletes compete intensely over a short period of time, a variety of sports injuries and illnesses are often encountered. Maintaining health records at these events presents a challenge to medical organizing committees. Accurate data collection is important, not only for planning of medical services, but also for development of prevention programs and policies relating to athletes' health. Recruitment of a dedicated data collection team with sports medicine background and computer expertise will facilitate collection and analysis of medical data at this type of event. This paper reviews the development and implementation of a sports injury and illness recording system used at the 1989 Jeux Canada Summer Games. Over 3500 participants had access to comprehensive medical services during the two weeks of competitions. Information on medical encounters was available daily during the games and a final report on sports injuries and illnesses was easily generated.