On 23 Aug, Asia Pacific Dental Sleep Medicine (APDSM) held its 2nd Asia Pacific Dental Sleep Medicine Fellowship Day which saw clinicians, researchers, and manufacturers from the field across Asia gather in Singapore for a day of education and networking.
“The objective of the fellowship day is to promote better understanding of how dental sleep medicine is practiced in various countries in Asia Pacific,” said Dr Kelvin Chye, founder of APDSM.
The programme of the day followed a series of short lectures from invited guests who presented on their own journey with dental sleep medicine (DSM) as well as the context, challenges, and opportunities of DSM in their respective countries.
Special guest Dr Jerry Hu, founder of Nevada Dental Sleep in the US, shared about the options left for non-responders to oral appliance therapy. The triple board certified member in DSM drew from his personal experience of suffering from obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and highlighted the benefits of DSM as a clinical treatment to improve one’s quality of life.
“In the literature, although a minority, there are definitely non-responders to oral appliance therapy for treatment of OSA. When the patient is already CPAP intolerant or have already failed CPAP, what are the treatment options left for sleep apnoea? Since sleep apnoea is a serious medical issue with so many co-morbidities, this concern should not be taken lightly,” said Dr Hu.
Dr Mark Levi, CEO and chairman of Dr Levi’s Sleep Clinic, shared about the “tsunami” of OSA in paediatric patients. He explained that despite an approximated 80% of four-year-olds globally having under-developed mandibles, which are indicators of OSA in the future, there were only about 30 clinicians such as himself in the world who provided such therapy. Dr Levi believes that treating developing OSA symptoms at a the paediatric period will reduce the prevalence of OSA problems in adults.
Over 50 attendants were present from countries including Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, Taiwan the US, and the Philippines. The programme also included sharings from sponsoring oral appliance therapy device manufacturers such as SleepOn, ProSommus, Belun, Panthera Dental, OrthoApnea and 3DSleep, who highlighted the latest trends and technologies from the field.
Ian Spray, business development director for Panthera Dental, shared an overview of the Canadian company’s portfolio of CAD/CAM manufactured appliances for sleep, prothestics, and implants, as well as some of its activities in the Asia Pacific region.
“By introducing the power of fully digital workflows, we have been able to consistently produce accurate, durable, and effective sleep appliances that streamline treatment processes for dentists globally. This strategic focus has allowed us to manufacture over 150,000 products, each meticulously designed to brighten the smiles and improve the lives of patients worldwide,” said Spray.
The event further included wider medical professionals who highlighted the need for multi-disciplinary treatment approaches to tackle OSA. It is estimated that one in three Singaporeans suffer from OSA.
Sleep physician Dr Garvi Pandya shared updates on the use of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy, and cardiologist Dr Ronald Lee presented the findings of the recent ‘CRESCENT’ study, explaining the growing collaboration of cardiologists with DSM practitioners.
After the presentations, a panel session with Dr Chye, Dr Premthip Chalidapongse, Dr Tabitha Chng, and Dr Yong Chee Weng, engaged the audience in an open dialogue about their clinical challenges faced in the field, before the evening concluded with an informal networking session.
Dr Chye concluded thanking the speakers, sponsors, and attendees, hoping that through such events, the field of DSM will grow further with more opportunities for collaborations to treat OSA patients through a multi-disciplinary workflow.
He said: “I hope that by providing a platform where professionals can network and learn from one another, we can raise the awareness of dental sleep medicine as a clinical treatment and encourage greater collaboration between practitioners based in the region.”
Related: The blue ocean of dental sleep medicine
