If you are already a student at NNHH, please login with the same email address you used when registering for a certificate program or membership, then login to your library to complete this course. If you are new to NNHH, you will receive an email with login instructions after completing this registration form.

• TYPE OF PRESENTATION: On-Demand Recorded
• LOCATION: Online
• CE offered: AGD/PACE 1 credit hour
• PRESENTER: Dave Henrichsen, RDH, Myofunctional Therapist
• HOST: National Network of Healthcare Hygienists 
• Length of Access to Course: 1 year

COURSE DESCRIPTION

You saw their name on the schedule and it gave you shivers up your spine – you know who they are – teeth are sensitive, they gag on the water from the ultrasonic, gag on your x-ray sensor, occlusion as smooth as a baby’s back side, recession clear up the root, and fire engine red gingiva that bleeds when you look at it. You have beaten them with the flossing stick so many times and it doesn’t seem to help. You throw your exasperated scaler hands in the air in the universal sign of I don’t know what to do.

This patient is exhibiting all the signs and symptoms of an underlying myofunctional disorder. Mouth breathing, open lips, low tongue posture, tongue thrust swallow, tongue tie, orthodontic misalignment, nail biting, and thumb sucking are all symptoms of an underlying disorder in the way your patient uses the muscles of their mouth and face. Success in truly treating these dental diseases is found in preventing and treating the underlying causes of low tongue posture, improper swallowing, and mouth breathing. 

This course will connect the dots between the dental diseases you have spent your career fighting and the underlying hidden-in-plain-sight myofunctional disorders and introduce you to ways to identify and refer these patients to a myofunctional therapist.

OBJECTIVES

1. Gain an understanding of myofunctional disorders, their impact on oral health and overall well-being in individuals, and explore the principles and objectives of myofunctional therapy as a treatment approach for addressing these disorders.
2. Examine the relationship between tongue-tie, tongue thrust, mouth breathing, and their implications for airway health.
3. Investigate the correlation between Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders (OMDs) and Sleep Disordered Breathing (SDB), emphasizing the importance of recognizing and addressing these connections.
4. Develop skills for identifying symptoms associated with OMDs and related conditions in patients, including observation techniques and assessment strategies.
5. Explore effective strategies and interventions for assisting patients with myofunctional disorders and associated symptoms, emphasizing patient education, interdisciplinary collaboration, and evidence-based practices in treatment planning and management.

MEET YOUR INSTRUCTOR

Dave Henrichsen, RDH, CH-OSE, Myofunctional Therapist

Dave has received training from some of the greatest minds in myofunctional sciences, airway and breath work and has successfully launched and grown his own myofunctional therapy practice and has coached dozens of other therapists as they have started and grown their own practices. Over the last several years his strong desire to provide quality care to his patients has built a fire in him to help grow other myofunctional therapists to help them to also become excellent in their field and grow their practices.

Dave is a member of The American Dental Hygienists Association, International Association of Airway Hygienists, American Academy of Dental Hygiene, National Network of Healthcare Hygienists, is an educator for the Myomentor Institute, is a Breathe Institute Ambassador, and is a sought after speaker and presenter on topics of airway & myofunctional disorders, myofunctional therapy, and myofunctional business development.