Why treat sleep in your dental practice?

What happens when we sleep?

Sleep plays a vital role in maintaining mental health and physical well-being. During the four stages of sleep, critical biological and restorative functions occur.

Unhealthy sleep patterns prevent critical biological functions such as cellular restoration and the development of long-term memories and learning.

The autonomic nervous system regulates bodily functions, such as the heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, pupillary response, urination, and sexual arousal.

It is the primary mechanism in control of the fight-or-flight response. Unhealthy sleep patterns interrupt the proper function of the autonomic nervous system, which disrupts the proper release of important hormones.

Vital Functions of Healthy Sleep

Brain Function

Brain plasticity theory reveals how sleep contributes to proper brain function. Healthy sleep allows neurons to reorganize.

Emotional Well-being

Healthy sleep is necessary for emotional health. During sleep, specific regions of the brain are
actively regulating emotion while supporting healthy brain function and emotional stability.

Cellular Restoration

Every cell in your body is designed to restore itself. This happens during deep, restful sleep.

Energy Conservation

The energy conservation theory reveals how our bodies conserve energy during sleep by enabling our body to reduce our caloric requirements.

Metabolism

During sleep the body properly metabolizes sugars

Weight Regulation

Sleep affects your weight by controlling hunger hormones. Specific hormones including ghrelin,
which increases appetite, and leptin, which increases the feeling of being full after eating,
are regulated during sleep.

Proper Insulin Function

Some studies suggest sleep may protect against insulin resistance. By keeping cells healthy they are able to process glucose more efficiently. The brain also requires less glucose while sleeping, which may help the body regulate overall blood glucose.

Immunity

Your body makes cytokines during sleep. Cytokines are special proteins that fight infection and inflammation. Certain antibodies and immune cells are also created during healthy sleep. These molecules help defend against illness by destroying harmful germs.

Heart Health

Interrupted or unhealthy sleep has also been linked to risk factors which impact overall heart health. These include hypertension, overactive sympathetic nervous system activity and elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

Sleep is a foundation of optimal health + healing

Healthy sleep plays a vital role in virtually every system in the body.

What happens when we don’t sleep?

Chronic Disease

Healthy sleep patterns play an important role in health. Many chronic conditions can be traced to unhealthy sleep.

Insufficient or interrupted sleep can impact every organ system in the body. Sleep impacts brain chemistry and important neurological functions such as the timing and release of certain hormones. Unhealthy sleep patterns also affects the proper function of the central and autonomic nervous
systems, the cardiovascular system and overall heart health.

Individuals who suffer from health conditions which prevent them from achieving healthy sleep patterns will likely also suffer from one or more of the known conditions.

While there are a variety of conditions which affect healthy sleep, sleep disordered breathing, including mild-to-moderate obstructive sleep apnea is the leading cause unhealthy sleep patterns.

OSA is the leading cause of unhealthy sleep

The Leading Cause of Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is most often the result of underdeveloped upper and lower jaws. Mid-facial hypoplasia and mandibular retrognathia is an all too common developmental deficiency, likely caused by modern societal norms including limited breast feeding, nutritional deficiencies and a soft diet.

While under developed upper and lower jaws is common—it is not normal. Dentists today report as many as fifty percent of children will require orthodontic intervention. In fact, underdeveloped jaws has become so prevalent—nearly eighty five percent of adults will require wisdom teeth extraction. A clear sign of widespread craniofacial developmental deficiencies.

Mid-facial Hypoplasia and Mandibular Retrognathia

Underdeveloped upper and lower jaws are the leading cause of obstructive sleep apnea.

Dentists see the warning signs everyday.

A Sleep Health Epidemic

Millions of people of all ages suffer from sleep disordered breathing including mild-to-moderate obstructive sleep apnea as a result of underdeveloped upper and lower jaws. This widespread problem has contributed to a sleep health epidemic. Some estimates indicate one in four adults and as many as two in five adolescents are may suffer from some degree of sleep disordered breathing.

The typical dental practice has an estimated 500 existing patients who suffer from OSA.

Dentists are in a unique position to identify the warning signs of obstructive sleep apnea. As a result, the ADA has adopted policies affirming the essential role of dentistry in the treatment of sleep related breathing disorders.

The Essential Role of Dentistry

A New Paradigm

Craniofacial sleep medicine offers a new paradigm in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea in the dental office. Traditional sleep appliance therapy helps to relieve symptoms. Craniofacial sleep medicine targets the underlying cause.

The Vivos Integrated Practice Program provides everything you will need to be successful integrating craniofacial sleep medicine into your dental practice.

Practice Operations

Integrating craniofacial sleep medicine will impact every aspect of practice operations. Vivos Integrated Practices are assigned a dedicated Practice Advisor to help you successfully navigate the required operational changes within your practice.

Education

Vivos Integrated Practices access advanced clinical and practice management courses offered exclusively at the Institute for Craniofacial Sleep Medicine.

Courses include clinical core curriculum, practice management and integration, patient education and a variety of elective courses.

Diagnostics

VivoScore powered by SleepImage® is advanced precision diagnostics for sleep quality and obstructive sleep apnea. VivoScore technology analyzes Autonomic Nervous System regulation during sleep from a single sensor ring recorder. Proprietary algorithms automatically generate clinical outcome metrics on sleep quality, sleep duration and disordered sleep summarized in an easy to read report format.

Treatment Planning

The Vivos Airway Intelligence Service provides clinical analysis for every patient. Our advanced proprietary treatment planning algorithm enables
you to design an effective treatment plan.

The Vivos clinical protocol is a multidisciplinary approach that includes a variety of therapeutics to address each individual case.

Medical Billing

The Vivos Billing Intelligence Service provides the guidance and professional services to help improve case acceptance and maximum benefits from billing medical insurance.

Office Support

Vivos Integrated Practices are assigned to a small network which includes a Clinical Advisor to provide guidance and mentorship during the initial phases of integrating craniofacial sleep medicine into your
practice.

Clinical advisors are practicing clinicians who have treated a variety of cases.

Request More Information

What’s Included in The Vivos Integrated Practice Program?

The Vivos Integrated Practice program is the first comprehensive ecosystem to provide every tool and resource you will need to successfully integrate craniofacial sleep medicine into your dental practice.

Front Office

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Back Office

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Medical Billing

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Practice Integration

Unprecedented Support

Vivos Practice Intelligence provides hands-on coaching and unprecedented support for every area of your practice.

Operatory

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Hygiene

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Diagnostics

Sleep plays a vital role in overall health and wellness. Recent research has revealed important findings about critical biological

Institute for Craniofacial Sleep Medicine

Obstructive Sleep Apnea is most often the result of underdeveloped upper and lower jaws. Mid-facial hypoplasia and mandibular retrognathia is an all too common developmental deficiency, likely caused by modern societal norms including limited breast feeding, nutritional deficiencies and a soft diet.

While under developed upper and lower jaws is common—it is not normal. Dentists today report as many as fifty percent of children will require orthodontic intervention. In fact, underdeveloped jaws has become so prevalent—nearly eighty five percent of adults will require wisdom teeth extraction. A clear sign of widespread craniofacial developmental deficiencies.

ICSM Curriculum

Underdeveloped upper and lower jaws are the leading cause of obstructive sleep apnea.

Underdeveloped upper and lower jaws are the leading cause of obstructive sleep apnea.

Clinical + Practice Management Courses