In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Meghna Dassani, a pioneer dentist in Houston, Texas who is committed to addressing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) through a comprehensive approach which includes educating others about the prevalence and implications of this unrecognized and dangerous disturbance of sleep.
She shares the personal journey during her training that led her to incorporate the treatment of OSA as a major component of her dental practice from day one. This has culminated in the establishment of a community of physicians and other healthcare providers that work together on behalf of their patients.
Dr. Dassani provides insights into how a parent and child can recognize the signs and symptoms of OSA which exists in at least 2-4% of children and may very well be undiagnosed in many others. She highlights the long term negative health effects of untreated OSA, associated other conditions and the various treatments available today.
After over a decade she has become convinced that early intervention in more subtle cases heading towards complete OSA, should also be treated in order to prevent the onset of OSA. She suggests that children with other conditions such as obesity, ADHD, learning difficulties and mood disorders should have their sleep evaluated first, before pursuing treatments with medications that have significant side effects.
Dr. Dassani and Dr. Fethke explore the possibility that health inequities exacerbate sleep disturbances by not addressing co-morbidities, especially in children. If these issues are addressed in childhood, then health is promoted beginning in early life, thus positively impacting the future social well being of underprivileged communities.
In the end, Dr. Dassani stresses that there is no “one shoe fits all” when approaching OSA. She urges people to not give up hope if CPAP or other first line therapies are not helping. She also urges all clinicians to make screening for OSA a consistent and vital part of their health practices.
She stresses that healthcare providers should keep an open mind when addressing complex problems such as OSA and sleep disturbances. The best outcomes derive from combining the skills of many different medical specialties and overcoming our presumptions and biases about which medical profession should be addressing any particular health problem. Her philosophy of seeing and treating the “whole patient” rings true for OSA and so many other medical and social conditions in our society.
Resources: Meghnadassani.com, dassanidentistry.com,
Book: Airway is Life: Clearing the Air About Sleep Apnea.
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(This episode is also available in video format on Youtube @drfethkemd).
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