Sleep

The American Dental Association and the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recognizes that pediatric dentists are in a unique position to identify those children at greatest risks for Sleep-Related Breathing Disorders (SRBD) and Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). Sleep is essential for proper brain development and physical growth. The quantity of sleep hours is important, but it is the quality of sleep that is so critical. Snoring, mouth breathing, nasal congestion, teeth grinding will affect the quality of sleep. We also may see daytime symptoms appear when sleep is not restorative including daytime drowsiness, trouble concentrating, irritability or moodiness, anxiety, and hyperactivity. Interrupted or fragmented sleep can be caused by allergies, large tonsils or adenoids, small airway, poor tongue tone or a tongue restriction. Interrupted sleep does not allow children to enter and stay in the deeper phases of sleep that are vital to forming the neural connections that help our daytime attentiveness and mental function. It is our goal to help parents find the root cause of sleep issues and make changes or treatment recommendations that will serve your child best.