FAQS For Professionals
Answers to frequently asked questions.
How will joining SADI benefit my practice?
Joining SADI will distinguish your practice from standard dental practices. You will be offering an important service to existing patients and gain new ones via word of mouth. Treating additional patients with noticeably therapeutic results will be emotionally rewarding to you as a dentist, not to mention increase your bottom line.
How can I prescreen patients who may suffer from obstructive
sleep apnea?
Educate your staff and talk to your patients about sleep apnea and snoring. Many may not be aware that this condition can be treated with oral appliances. Because the condition is so prevalent, even if a current dental patient is not a potential OSA patient, they may know someone who would benefit from such diagnosis and treatment. Others may have already approached their family doctor about it, but not be aware of the dentist’s role.
Why is an Ambulatory Device preferable to a study done in a sleep lab?
Sleep labs require the patient to spend the night away from home, hooked up to machinery with multiple electrodes with wires. Often, patients do not experience the same quality of sleep in this setting as they do in their own bed. In fact, some patients either cannot or will not submit to a sleep lab study. With an ambulatory device, the patient places a simple device on his/her hand and sleeps comfortably in his/her own bed. An ambulatory device monitors and records the same bio frequencies as a sleep lab, which are easily submitted via HIPAA-compliant computer network for a complete diagnosis.
Won't I lose patients to a physician specializing in sleep medicine?
Not likely. SADI employs pulmonologists to read the data from an ambulatory device and make the diagnosis. A full report is returned to you, along with suggested treatment options. The patient returns to you for oral appliance therapy, including appliance adjustment and follow-up examinations until the apnea is eliminated or reduced to a manageable level.
Why is oral appliance therapy preferable to the CPAP?
The current gold standard for treatment of obstructive sleep apnea is the Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) device. However, this bulky contraption has a very low compliance rate by patients. It may cause rashes/discomfort, doesn’t travel well, and is judged decidedly “unsexy” by the patient’s bed partner. Oral appliances, on the other hand, are created from a cast of the patient’s mouth, thus fitting comfortably; are lightweight and compact; and have a higher rate of patient
