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Health & Fitness

The Silent Airway Problem that Can Impact a Child's Brain Development

A symposium to Stimulate Awareness and Early Intervention of Disturbed Breathing Issues in Children and the Role each Practitioner Must Play in the Solution October 6, 2012 – NYU College of Dentistry

A symposium to
Stimulate Awareness and Early Intervention of Disturbed Breathing Issues in Children and the Role each Practitioner Must Play in the Solution
October 6, 2012 – NYU College of Dentistry

The American Association of Physiological Medicine & Dentistry is a multidisciplinary membership organization dedicated to studying the role of sleep disordered breathing/disturbed breathing in health, brain development and well-being. The AAPMD will host a multidisciplinary symposium for physicians, dentists, healthcare practitioners, educators and the public to stimulate awareness and early intervention of these disturbed breathing issues in children. The event entitled The Silent Airway Problem that Can Impact a Child's Brain Development will take place on Saturday, October 6, 2012 from 8:30 AM – 5:30 PM in the Saklad Auditorium at NYU College of Dentistry.

Disturbed Breathing or Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) is a general term for breathing difficulties that occur during sleep. Its hallmarks are snoring (which is usually accompanied by mouth breathing) and sleep apnea. SDB reportedly peaks from two to six years of age, but also occurs in younger children and infants. About 1 in 10 children snore regularly and 2 to 4 percent have sleep apnea, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Health and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS). Common causes of SDB are enlarged tonsils or adenoids and a study of more than 11,000 children followed for over six years has found that young children with sleep-disordered breathing are prone to developing behavioral difficulties such as hyperactivity and aggressiveness, as well as emotional symptoms and difficulty with peer relationships, according to research at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.1

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“We found that children with sleep-disordered breathing were from 40 to 100 percent more likely to develop neurobehavioral problems by age 7, compared with children without such breathing problems,” said Karen Bonuck, Ph.D., author of a March 2012 Pediatrics article, "Sleep Disordered Breathing in a Population-Based Cohort: Behavioral Effects at 4 and 7 Years."

Six different speakers will share the podium throughout the day, sharing results and teachings from studies that can help educate the professional and public community about how certain signs in a child demonstrate unhealthy breathing and SDB, which has neurological implications that can lead to  adverse effects upon social/emotional, behavioral and cognitive development; how multidisciplinary teamwork can flag potential problems, starting in infancy, and alleviate existing problems; the value of breast-feeding and the perils of tooth extractions; and how improved airway function can be achieved at any age.

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The distinguished panel of experts includes:

Karen Bonuck, PhD: Professor of Family and Social Medicine, and of Obstetrics &  Gynecology and Women’s Health, Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Dr. Bonuck studies the epidemiology of pediatric sleep problems and their functional effects, particularly in children with developmental disabilities/delays. Her March 2012  Pediatrics article reported a 50% increased risk of social/emotional and behavioral problems among children with early symptoms of sleep disordered breathing. Dr. Bonuck will be discussing her September 2012 study, Pediatric Sleep Disorders and Special Educational Need at 8 Years: A Population-Based Cohort Study.  

Philip Cooper, DDS: A native of Savannah, Georgia. He is a graduate of Meharry Medical College – School of Dentistry. Co-Founder, Chief Investigator for Smiles Are Meaningful, Inc., a research organization whose focus is the impact of Sleep Apnea on growth and development in African American Children. Author of, “Why? African American Children Cannot Read”, the negative impact of Sleep Apnea on children’s reading ability. Neurobehavioral Implications of Sleep Disordered Breathing will be the focus of Cooper’s lecture, exploring the neurological co-morbidities; medical/biological and social/economical, resulting from poor sleep regimens and how the “Critical Period”, 3 – 5 years old, in brain development is pivotal for long-term health and well-being.

William M. Hang, DDS, MSD: International speaker on the Biobloc technique, orthodontics and the Posterior Airway Space, guidance of tooth eruption and prevention of tooth impaction, facial esthetics, and obstructive Sleep Apnea’s relationship to facial development. He has been a Lecturer at Harvard University Orthodontic Program, American Association of Orthodontists, International Association for Orthodontists. President of North American Association of Facial Orthotropics. Dr. Hang will present treatment methods to develop the face forward for growing individuals and to reverse previous retractive orthodontics in adults – the new paradigm to improve the facial balance and the airway.

Ofer Jacobowitz, M.D., PhD. FAASM, FAAOA: Graduated from MIT with an SB degree in life sciences. Ph.D. in Pharmacology and an MD degree from Mount Sinai. Board certified in otolaryngology / Head and Neck Surgery, Sleep Medicine, and is a fellow of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy. He is Chair of the sleep-related breathing disorders section of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Inflammation, Swelling & Sleep in Children: The ENT Perspective will be reviewed in this lecture, asking the important questions: How does allergy and its treatment affect sleep, anatomy and function?; How might airway inflammation affect our children?; and What interventions are available?

Marc Richard Moeller, BA: Managing Director the Academy of Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (AOMT). Majority of career in business banking with experience in sales management, sales and marketing strategy, and integration of vertical business units across complimentary business lines. North American Director of the JPMorgan Chase Merchant Services Business Banking unit he managed to increase business by over 500% within two years. Moeller ascertains that evaluation of children’s airway issues is a multidisciplinary collaboration. He will teach about how the assessment and treatment of functional and postural disorders of the tongue, lips and other structures by an Orofacial myologist is an essential component of a team approach.

Stephen H. Sheldon, D.O., F.A.A.P.: Professor of Pediatrics, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine and Director of Sleep Medicine Center Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. Active in clinical practice of pediatric sleep medicine. Member National Sleep Medicine Course Committee of American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Board of Directors of American Academy of Sleep Medicine and American Sleep Medicine Foundation. Sheldon’s topic of discussion at the symposium: Physiological Basis of Upper Airway Obstruction in the Pediatric Patient; and the traditional treatment for these conditions.

“Increasing awareness and intervention for disturbed breathing issues will help enhance the potential of children in our society through increased awareness and prevention,” said Michael Gelb, DDS and Howard Hindin, DDS, Co-Directors of the AAPMD.

For additional information regarding The Silent Airway Problem that Can Impact a Child's Brain Development symposium including Conference Fees, AAPMD Membership Fees and directions, to download the event brochure, or to register online, please visit http://www.aapmd.org.

Conference fees
Category Fee 
MDs, DDS - $295.00 
AAPMD Member - $200.00
Practitioners Other - (Nurse, Hygienist, OT, PT) - $125.00
AAPMD Member - $85.00
Public $50.00

This continuing education activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the standards of the ADA Continuing Education Recognition Program (ADA CERP) through joint efforts between New York University College of Dentistry and the American Association of Physiological Medicine & Dentistry.

About AAPMD
The American Association of Physiological Medicine & Dentistry is a multidisciplinary, membership organization dedicated to studying the role of the airway in health, brain development and well-being. Informing the public about this under-recognized critical health issue by forging an alliance of consumers and medical and healthcare practitioners is the mission of AAPMD.

American Association of Physiological Medicine & Dentistry
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info@aapmd.org
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1“Kids' Abnormal Breathing During Sleep Linked to Increased Risk for Behavioral Difficulties” Albert, Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University. 2012.

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