Ronald Attanasio DDS MSEd MS

Dr. Attanasio is the owner of Nebraska Dental Sleep Medicine PC, and he is also a full-Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's College of Dentistry in Lincoln.

Prior to receiving his training in general dentistry at the University of Maryland, Dr. Attanasio earned both his BA degree and his MS Education degree at the University of Pennsylvania.  He was a public school teacher in the Philadelphia area before attending dental school.  Following dental school, Dr. Attanasio earned a Specialty Certificate in Prosthodontics (crowns, bridges, dentures) and a MS degree in Oral Biology at the University of Maryland.  Dr. Attanasio subsequently opened a private practice in New Jersey and taught part-time at the University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey's Dental School.  Over the years, he transitioned his private practice into the dental school as he assumed the position of Director of the school's Center for TMJ Disorders & Orofacial Pain.  Dr. Attanasio was recruited to the UNMC-COD in Lincoln in 1990.  While he currently teaches and researches as a faculty member in the school and serves as the school's Director of the TMD & Orofacial Pain Section, Dr. Attanasio maintains his private practice in Sleep Disorders and TMJ Disorders at the Nebraska Dental Sleep Medicine office location in Lincoln.

Dr. Attanasio is married with five children and one daughter-in-law.  When he is not spending time with his family, Dr. Attanasio keeps busy with writing dental journal articles and textbooks, giving presentations on a local and national level to different groups, and handgun shooting competitions locally and nationally.  He is also Director of the Celebrate Recovery program at First Evangelical Free Church in Lincoln.

Dental Management of Sleep Disorders is the first text of its kind to focus on the dentist's role in treating patients with sleep-related breathing disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, snoring, and sleep bruxism).

It is a practical clinical book that 1) highlights the background to sleep disorders, 2) discusses the dentist's role in their diagnosis and treatment, and 3) outlines clinical strategies and guidance.

The book features 1) a full discussion of the use of oral appliances, 2) an overview of current treatment modalities, and 3) investigates the relationship of sleep disorders to dental and orofacial causes.

KEY FEATURES:

• Provides basic foundational knowledge including physiology and pathophysiology of sleep-related breathing disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, snoring, sleep bruxism).
• Contextualizes the dentist's role as a part of the medical team.
• Discusses the full range of medical and dental treatment approaches to the most common sleep-related breathing disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, snoring, sleep bruxism).
• Includes detailed discussion of clinical applicability of oral appliance therapy for sleep apnea, snoring, and sleep bruxism.

CONTENTS:

Section 1 - Overview of Sleep Medicine.

1. Impact of sleep disorders on society.
2. Human sleep.
3. Classification of sleep disorders.
4. Pediatrics and sleep-related breathing disorders.
5. Medical and dental conditions related to sleep-related breathing disorders.

Section 2 - Assessment of the Sleep-Related Breathing Disorder Patient.

1. Sleep assessment/studies.
2. Evaluation by the dentist.
3. Imaging for sleep-related breathing disorders.

Section 3 - Management of the Sleep-Related Breathing Disorder Patient.

1. Positive airway pressure therapy for sleep-related breathing disorders.
2. Surgical treatment for sleep-related breathing disorders.
3. Oral appliance therapy for sleep-related breathing disorders.

Appendices:

1. Abbreviations for sleep medicine.
2. Glossary of terms for sleep medicine.
3. Index.