Dental Sleep Medicine Insider January 2016 | Page 3
Jason Tierney
Editor-in-chief
IN BED WITH
THE EDITOR
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?
The Dental Sleep Medicine Insider
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314-882-7746
These are exciting times in the
world of Dental Sleep Medicine.
In the field, I regularly hear
proclamations about how DSM
is growing exponentially. A
glance at the AADSM’s growth
trajectory
confirms
this.
However, an alarmingly small
percentage of the general
dentistry population is actually
treating Sleep Disordered
Breathing (SDB). It’s estimated
that there are about 160,000
general dentists in the U.S. but
less than 15,000 are offering
oral appliance therapy and less
than 10% of those individuals
(approximately 1% of the
profession) are treating more
than 5 patients per month.
Why is this? Why aren’t more
dentists treating SDB? There
are an estimated 25 million
(and growing) sleep apneics
in the U.S. Dentists are on the
frontlines for identification and
management of these patients,
but less than 1% of dentists
are stepping up to the plate?
Is it lack of education? The
DSM CE market is growing like
a gremlin fed after midnight.
Is it because of the obstacles
inherent to the out-of-network
medical billing model? There
are a number of competent
3rd party firms that can
successfully
manage
the
billing process for you. Don’t
believe me? Just ask them.
Sometimes
I
hear
the
contemptuous rationale that
“I just don’t have any patients
that need the treatment.” See
the aforementioned prevalence
stats to debunk that myth.
I’ve even heard some dentists
posit that they don’t offer this
life-saving service because it
can “cause TMD.” Just read the
following pages for more on that.
I’ll ask again. Why aren’t
more dentists treating SDB?
You tell me.