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Product Profile: The Dental Sleep Network

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Dental Sleep Medicine - State-of-the-Art 2012

Can it really be profitable?

At the Dental Sleep Network, we believe that dentists can play a significant role in improving the quality of life of their patients afflicted with severe snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. By implementing sleep dentistry into their practices, dentists can create a new revenue stream that is augmented by health insurance reimbursement.

The treatment of severe snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is one of the fastest growing segments in dentistry today. Although the dental labs that make custom oral appliances for sleep apnea have seen tremendous growth and profits, many dentists are wondering whether their own practices can profitably enter this new market.

Most health insurance guidelines stipulate that oral appliances must be provided by dentists. The AASM has also recommended oral appliances for patients who are intolerant to traditional OSA therapy. For decades, the primary treatment for sleep apnea has been continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP). Across the U.S. it is estimated that as many as 50 percent of the patients who begin CPAP therapy discontinue its use for a variety of reasons. Dentists are now positioned to provide a therapy that is effective and highly compliant.

With the dentist's oversight and the involvement of a properly trained sleep specialist, patients can now quickly obtain a medical diagnosis and be given multiple therapy options, including oral appliances.

Although home sleep testing is 10 to 40 percent of the cost of specialty lab tests, patients still might have concerns about cost. An interim step can be to have patients take a home test that can be administered for pennies on the dollar when compared to traditional lab testing.

One out of five of your adult patients are at risk for OSA. Many of these patients will have already been diagnosed with sleep apnea and have discontinued treatment with their CPAP machine. A well-trained practice can convert 25 percent of their at-risk patients to oral appliances. This does not include patients who are desperate to "get off the couch" and back into their own beds with a realistic snoring solution.

Oral appliances are typically priced between $1,500-2,500. Taking a conversion rate of 25 percent of at-risk patients will produce between $7,500-12,500 a month in new revenue. The average cost of an appliance with disposables and shipping charges is just less than $400. That equates to between $5,500- 10,500 in gross profit. On an annual basis, that means $66,000- 126,000 in additional gross profit. Obtaining the proper training and equipment and dedicating ample time to learning how to implement sleep dentistry properly should cost well under $8,000. That means a small one-doctor practice can realize a payback of one to two months.

The diagnosis and treatment of sleep apnea is an industry that generates more than $5 billion a year. The current pathway for patients is expensive and inconvenient and ends in a therapy that is only used 50 percent of the time. It is not a stretch of the imagination to see dentists capturing 25 percent or more of this market in the next three to five years.

The Dental Sleep Network is a company that helps general dentists grow the sleep apnea treatment segment of their practices. The Dental Sleep Network partners with dental practices by providing education and training, screening and diagnostic services, physician specialists and medical billing services.

Company Contact
For general information about The Dental Sleep Network organization, please e-mail info@thedentalsleepnetwork.com, visit www.thedentalsleepnetwork.com or call toll-free 855-GOT SLEEP. The Dental Sleep Network is located in Columbus, Ohio.
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