Simplifying Case Acceptance: Getting Buy-in from Kids and Parents for Treating Sleep-Related Breathing Disorders
Susan Maples, DDS

Doctor: “I suspect your child may have a Sleep-Related Breathing Disorder.”
Parent: “What? What is that? How can you tell?”
(15 minutes later—now you’re behind schedule…)
Parent: “Do you have any reading material on that? I think I’ll do some web searching and learn a little more.”

The children who stand to benefit the most from intervention often present with a wide range of symptoms, challenges, and life limitations—not just your recognition of dental crowding and inter-molar width deficiencies. For these symptomatic kids, treatment acceptance is usually straightforward, especially if parents have already sought solutions and are eager for help.

But for asymptomatic children, case acceptance can be more challenging. You may need to explain dental and midface discrepancies, ask key screening questions, stay curious, plant seeds, and exercise patience. In the meantime, you can introduce simple strategies to create awareness, curb non-nutritive sucking habits, clear nasal passages, encourage nasal breathing habits and address early myofunctional disorders.

In this seminar, Dr. Susan will guide you and your whole team through effective communication techniques, financial discussions, and next steps for children who are not yet ready for treatment. If time allows, we’ll also explore co-referral relationships for complex cases requiring AT surgery, allergy management, myofunctional therapy, or tethered oral tissue release.

You will learn:

1. Which profound screening questions you might include in your routine health history and when to introduce more in-depth screening questions
2. What physical conditions you might track at your 6-month preventive visits
3. How to work towards a powerful hygiene handoff
4. What’s the magic formula for successful case acceptance
5. What financial options are a “must offer” for improved case acceptance
6. What forward strides you can offer for the child-in-waiting
7. What in-office or on-line support materials you might offer

Dr. Susan Maples is a passionate health educator and leads a successful, Total Health, insurance-independent dental practice in Holt, Michigan. She brings preventive and restorative dental expertise, a passion for mouth-body total health, a master’s degree in business/marketing, and 30+ years of experience in private practice. She is the creator and founder of Total Health Academy, a complete online solution for dental teams to integrate all aspects of Total Health Dentistry, author of BlabberMouth! 77 Secrets Only Your Mouth Can Tell You To Live a Healthier, Happier, Sexier Life, developer of the Hands-On Learning Lab™ and SelfScreen.net.

1 CE credit available to AAPMD members