The Right Bite Sleep and TMJ Pain Care
A common phrase used across the world to end the day and wake up to an energy filled new one. Or would you?
Forget the energy… would you even wake up?
I am an avid traveller. I travel a lot… duh! I ve been to 89 countries (would ve crossed 100 if not for the Covid-19); mainly lecturing about OSA trying to create awareness among the doctors in those countries; but especially the dentists who have absolutely no clue about the power that they have in their hand.
Dentists tend to become “tooth-technicians” after their dental schooling. I wouldn’t blame them. It’s more due to the way our curriculum is laid out. Once a dentist gets into practice, all he/she remembers is the final year subjects. The anatomy, physiology, biochemistry etal is all forgotten, unfortunately. I keep telling the new docs to re-learn all that again so that they can start helping patients suffering from not just tooth aches but also Sleep Disorders and Facial Pain.
OSA is a global phenomenon. Lack of awareness is also a global issue; albeit more in the developing countries. The western developed world is more aware of their health and their monetarily better-off governments’ health funding also ensures proper reach to good health infrastructure. The developing world is far back especially with health related research funding. Hence, newer treatment modalities take more time to get there.
Sleep medicine is one such example.
OSA isn’t rocket science. It can be logically explained to one and all. The end consequence of Oxygen Desaturations leading to Hypoxia (reduced oxygen in the body) is now more understood thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic. 60% of all deaths that occur during sleep is due to this very same undiagnosed and untreated OSA.
When I started my Sleep Dentistry practice in India 15 years ago, there were hardly a few sleep labs around. There has been a remarkable turn around since then. I, myself, own 6 labs running full every day now. Awareness has increased. Social media has helped. Print media not as much. But more dentists have to come forward and understand their role in trying to demystify this silent killer.
The logic – The unconscious tongue falls back due to to gravity while sleeping, blocking the airway leading to an apnoea event. There are several other caveats that lead to this like age, gender, BMI or even tongue size. But if the oral airway is narrow (which is decided by the jaw size), then the tongue has lesser space and falls back even more dragging the lower jaw with it as the tongue is attached to it. This is where the dentist come into the limelight!
Wear an appliance that will hold the lower jaw forward and hence the tongue as well. It’s pocket sized and more patient compliant…. and more importantly doesn’t need any power to run!
However, It’s all about the diagnosis and the bite in which the appliance is registered in.
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