New Techniques for Combining Orthodontic & Airway Treatment while managing TMJD
Ryan Yousefian, BS, MS

It is no secret that most airway compromised patients will suffer from TMJD; yet oftentimes the joint gets ignored when treating sleep related breathing disorders. This can have a severely negative treatment outcome both for the patient and yourself as a clinician. Additionally, most mandibular advancement devices (MAD) used for addressing OSA can have a negative impact on your patients’ joint health. Today we will look at the importance of addressing both issues simultaneously and a new approach to managing TMJD/OSA during active aligner treatment for bite correction.

Learning Objectives:

• The correlation of TMJD and OSA in your airway compromised patients
• How combining OSA/TMJD treatment with orthodontics can have a positive financial impact on your practice
• A new approach to simultaneously managing TMJD/OSA during aligner treatment for bite correction

Ryan is a co-founder at ApnoMed and developed the business idea around proprietary techniques and devices invented at Dr. Yousefian’s practice. He had been previously impacted by sleep apnea at a young age, giving him an insider’s view on the dark side of sleep apnea. Ryan took his personal experiences with sleep apnea and envisioned a better solution that could help others suffering from sleep apnea, now known as ApnoMed. Ryan obtained his BS in Business Entrepreneurship at Washington State University and also received an MS in Business Entrepreneurship at the University of Washington Fosters School of Business. Ryan led ApnoMed to be one of the very few startup companies out of the University of Washington to consecutively win the 2020 University of Washington Health Innovation challenge, 2020 University of Washington Dempsey Business Plan Competition, and also graduated from the Jones + Foster Accelerator. Ryan was also awarded “best idea for a new medical device” during his time at the University of Washington utilizing ApnoMed’s technologies and business model. During his time at the University of Washington, Ryan raised over $100k in non-dilutive funding from the various competition winnings. Most recently, Ryan was selected as Forbes 30-Under-30 cohort for most influential entrepreneurs and also 425 Business 30-Under-30. Ryan’s long-term goal with ApnoMed is to commercialize a globally accessible and affordable cure for obstructive sleep apnea.

1 CE credit available to AAPMD members