TMJ, Sleep Apnea & Night Guards That Don't Close the Airway | Dr. Michael Gelb

Is your night guard making your patient's sleep apnea worse? TMJ and sleep pioneer Dr. Michael Gelb explains why so many night guards and orthodontic cases close the airway, why airway treatment should start before age five, and how to make a night guard that opens the airway instead. In this episode: - Why half the patients in your hygiene chair may be tired from poor sleep - How traditional night guards can close the airway, and the alternative - Why crowded teeth are the symptom, not the cause - Early intervention: why age seven may be too late for airway treatment - Orthodontics, the TMJ and treating orthopedically instead of dentally - How to find ENTs and providers who understand airway Dr. Michael Gelb is a TMJ and sleep specialist in New York City, son of TMJ pioneer Dr. Harold Gelb, co-founder of the American Academy of Physiological Medicine and Dentistry (AAPMD) and co-author of GASP: Airway Health. Chapters: 0:00 Intro 1:48 Welcome Dr. Michael Gelb 4:27 Going through dental school as Harold Gelb's son 6:48 Our skulls have changed 7:46 Why every dentist needs to know the joint and the airway 8:42 COVID and the rise in clenching 9:13 Half your hygiene patients are tired 10:16 Should every dentist have a cone beam? 11:04 Orthodontics that makes the arches smaller 13:16 Is dentistry closing the airway? 15:15 The bicuspid extraction debate 17:44 Are we starting orthodontics too late? 19:15 Why airway treatment should start before age five 22:16 Ortho, the TMJ and pathological joint positions 26:52 Getting orthodontists on board with airway 28:40 Expanding the palate in adults 29:44 The seven keys to occlusion and closing spaces 31:44 When the ENT says the tonsils can stay 34:44 Finding airway-trained providers near you 35:28 Night guards that don't close the airway 38:47 Rule out sleep apnea before making a night guard 39:48 Closing 🎧 Listen to the podcast: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dentists-in-the-know/id1543254763 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2Elfj6LX0hCUyp0AgdTsij 📺 Make sure you subscribe to catch new episodes live every Wednesday at 8pm ET! https://www.youtube.com/@dentistsintheknow 🌟 Stay up to date on all the latest dental trends when you follow the DINKs: https://fanflet.com/dinks/social-2