Airway Diagnostics Upgrades: How The Latest Innovations Can Protect Your Airway

Straight teeth can look great, but what if the way we straighten them quietly steals space your tongue and airway need to do their job? We dig into the latest innovations in airway focused dentistry and why better airway diagnostics is not just a “nice to have” for dentists and orthodontists, but a real lever for improving sleep, energy, and long term health.

We talk about how traditional orthodontics and clear aligners often rely on retraction, closing space to line teeth up, and how that can unintentionally work against breathing. Then we shift to a different approach: collecting better records, using 3D CBCT imaging and planning software, and designing treatment that can expand and protract where appropriate to build oral volume and restore tongue space. Along the way, we address a tough reality in airway centered care: the coordination challenge between general dentists and orthodontists, and why the profession is still debating the paradigm shift.

We also zoom out to what really drives change over time: structure, function, and breathing behavior. Genetics plays a role, but breathing patterns, tongue posture, and daily habits shape growth more than most people realize. Finally, we share one of the most exciting innovations yet, an AI powered tool created by a patient that answers common questions using only curated, evidence based podcast content and points you to exact references, cutting through misinformation. If you care about sleep breathing, airway health, or the future of orthodontics, subscribe, share this with someone who snores, and leave a review with the biggest question you want us to tackle next.

To learn more about Dr. Mark A. Cruz, DDS. visit:
https://www.MarkACruzdds.com
Dr. Mark A. Cruz, DDS. 
32241 Crown Valley Pkwy #200  
Dana Point, CA 92629  
949-661-1006 

Transcript

Welcome And Why Airway Matters

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to Airway Focused Dentistry with Dr. Mark A. Cruz, the show where better breathing leads to better living. If your nights sound like a lawnmower chorus or your energy stuck on low battery, you're in the right place. Hosted by Dr. Mark A. Cruz, we explore how the airway impacts your sleep, your health, and your smile. So you can breathe, sleep, and be well. Take a deep breath, and let's get started.

New Ways To Spot Airway Issues

SPEAKER_01 0:33

New tools and technologies are reshaping how clinicians identify airway issues earlier, faster, and with greater precision. Welcome everyone. I'm Julie Schwenzer, producer and co-host with Dr. Mark A. Cruz. Dr. Cruz, it's always great to be with you.

SPEAKER_02 0:48

Thank you, Dido. I appreciate the opportunity.

SPEAKER_01 0:51

Yeah, we appreciate you. So we're excited to hear from you. Like we're continuing from last episode, we talked about how you became one of the gurus of airway dentistry. And now we're going to talk about the latest innovations in airway diagnostics. What are some of them? What are you looking at right now?

Why Retraction Orthodontics Can Harm Breathing

SPEAKER_02 1:10

Uh, you know, there are uh, well, let me just say some traditional innovations, like the basic one would be, for instance, uh, some of the tools that are used clinically. Um, people always talk about braces, orthodontic treatment, clearliners. And traditionally, that approach with braces or clearliners tend to be retracted in nature, meaning that it actually takes away oral volume in straightening out teeth. So you can't you solve one problem, let's say uh a cosmetic problem or a functional problem, the patient may complain about that their teeth are crooked, they don't like the way it looks. And so then they will have braces or clear liners like inviseline. Dieseline is just a brand, it's kind of like same Kleenex, which is a brand of a facial tissue. But it's a brand of one of many uh that their algorithms and the way they design the series of clear liners that are changed from week to week, tend to actually, in straightening the teeth out, actually retract. And that creates a problem for the airway, even though it addresses a dental problem. So the more global breeding airway problem um oftentimes is exacerbated or is initiated.

Planning Software That Creates Tongue Space

SPEAKER_02 2:34

So the tool of being able to have an algorithm that actually protracts, creates space, um, is one that I've um um developed with uh a couple of colleagues that uh actually uses a planning software that allows just the average general dentist really to get uh a number of data points, a gallery of photographic images, some um CVCT, which is three-dimensional uh radiograph of the patient, and a number of other things to load into the platform, software platform, that then then generates a simulation uh for expanding and uh developing more tongue space. It also excuse me, it also aesthetically looks better because you have a broader arc of smile, better facial proportion, all these things. So regular orthodontics by and large actually closes spaces, whereas this, and that's what we call retraction. Whereas what we're doing with this, these protocols is actually increasing space and spacing between the teeth, which eventually get closed in a way that gives tongue space back to the patient, and the space that is opened up can be closed in a non-retractive way, it goes way beyond the um discussion here to get

The Orthodontics Bottleneck In Airway Care

SPEAKER_02 4:12

into it technically. But so that's one, I think, very, very important piece because up to this point, one of the bottlenecks in practicing with airway focus uh is, and I know I'm gonna get many people upset when I say this, is the orthodontist. The orthodontist, it's all about straightening teeth out. I always joke, it's treating the teeth attached to the patient while ignoring the patient attached to the teeth because they haven't connected the dots. And in their training, even though early on in their training they were trained in uh growth and development, facial growth and development, the tendency is focusing on how the teeth are that the patient presents with, which is also how they get paid. So, why would you change your paradigm that's very efficient? And I'm not saying it's a right or a wrong, it's just the way uh unwittingly these errors are made, in my opinion, in clinical practice. But that's starting to change, even with a lot of arguments going back and forth um in professional circles. So, but it's become a barrier in integrating care between a restorative or general dentist and the orthodontist, because the orthodontist would play a very pivotal role in addressing this problem, but yet at this point, they just want to focus on the teeth by and large, although that is changing. So that's a big challenge. Um and so um I hope that

Structure Function And Breathing Behavior

SPEAKER_02 5:47

makes sense.

SPEAKER_01 5:47

Yeah, sure. And with some of the innovations with airway dentistry, do you think that they more focus on like function or the visibility into the airway structure? Or is it like all around helping us get a better idea of what's actually going on? Because like you, you know, you always make a good point about we need to look at the breathing and the the function and not, you know, the body as a whole. So, how do you think how do you think these innovations are playing into everything?

SPEAKER_02 6:17

That's a really good question. Yes. So you bring up a really key point. The other part of what I just um talked about is the focus on just structure. But we have to look at root cause, what caused the structure to become the way it is. It's not genetics. We used to believe that, and that's a part of it, but the bigger part is the functional response that actually grows the face, how the how you hold the tongue, how you breathe, all these things that grow the face. And that's function. And then the the third part of that structure, function, is behavior. When I say behavior, I'm talking about breathing behavior, and that's not even on the radar screen, even with the physician. And yet now people are starting to understand that breathing as a behavior is very, very key to overall general health and wellness.

An AI App That Answers Patient Questions

SPEAKER_02 7:09

So I had a meeting this week, coincidentally, with a patient who also happens to be um uh an engineer, and uh he had been a lot, he's been a long-standing patient and had uh uh mentioned to me as he was looking into treat treating himself, he started getting into as an engineer would, right? They ask a lot of questions, they check every box, dot every I, across every T. I love it, right? Very data-driven uh approach. And he took the time to actually get into some of our podcasts and he fed it, fed it into E uh into AI. He actually said, I'm dropping my projects that I have right now because I'm so interested. This is so fascinating. And he created an AI tool. And so this is another innovation that we're working on right now, where a patient that comes in, because this is kind of this is a rather complex topic. And the point of these podcasts is to kind of give bite-sized uh answers to complex questions. So you have to really listen to the series of it to really get a better and bigger picture. But he came up with a brilliant uh idea where he would take, for example, these podcasts and drop them in to an agent, AI agent, and uh transcribe the notes and do certain things that would then lead to an iOS app. So on your smartphone, be able to pull up off of a QR code the app on your phone where let's say you're a patient, you have a question, and you're a mom that just finished having a consultation and got a lot of information, made sense, but it's uh there are more questions. Like, no, I didn't quite understand why my kid is still wet in the bed at six years of age, or why he has these recurrent earaches or upper respiratory uh problems, why he's cranking, why he's being diagnosed with ADD, ADHD, why he has it isn't reaching his benchmarks in height and weight, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. Well, that mom, uh, as an example, can go on the app and actually type the question. And what it would do is it would uh it would scrape the uh information from the podcasts and give the answer. And I was blown away as to how detailed and organized using AI the answer was. And then at the end, it would give the references as to which podcast and where in the podcast to get more detailed information. So I think that's a really important uh tool or innovation, as you were asking about, uh, that we're developing. And why that's important is it won't go out into the internet in general that will hallucinate. In other words, you get a lot of misinformation out there. And because you don't really understand, you won't understand what's right and what's wrong. And so everything that I talk about uh on the website that is also the the textbook is is based on, is all evidence-based. It's all based on studies, it's all based on um the the paradigm I've been working on with my partner, um, teaching partner, uh, last 15 years. And it's it's growing. And the challenge that a lot of providers have is I get it, I understand, but it's so much, it's so mind-blowing because non-silo this will give them a tool to go back and learn it. And so I always tell the patient and also my colleagues, it's a lot of information. You're not gonna learn tonight. It's not like a weekend course, so you're learning how to do a technique. And on Monday, you could start like actually doing the technique. It's nothing like that. It's really understanding what we as healthcare providers really should be doing, is focusing more on diagnosis assessment in order to study what's going on with the patient. And this is a really good tool that you can ask. And so we're gonna build that um to be uh more and more available um in to two different populations. One would be a population that would be listening to this podcast, which is at like the consumer level, where we don't want to get too much into the details because it might be might not make sense, right? And you lose the person. And then the other would be the provider that really needs to know all the details on the protocol and why using this appliance, why doing that surgery? How do you so that's what we're working on now, and that's the most recent innovation. I'm super excited about it because it'll solve a huge problem that's um, you know, I've been struggling with for uh for a long time now. And this came from one of my patients, you know, longtime patient, who now was looking to treat himself. So I'm very grateful for that. And um, so to answer your question about innovations, that's the second innovation I I think that out of necessity that I'm excited about that is focused on airway uh dentistry.

SPEAKER_01 12:22

Oh, that's amazing. Congratulations to you and and your patient. And yeah, what a genius idea. Yeah, I I love it, it's not diluted, like the information is straight from the professional like you with the experience and the application of you know using this in real life and your education. So that's amazing, and he sounds awesome. Yes. Um, so I I mean I'm hoping that we could continue

Closing Thoughts And How To Learn More

SPEAKER_01 12:44

to talk about innovations maybe in the next episode. Sure. And um, because there's so much to talk about, and we always run out of time. So I don't want to keep you, Dr. Cruz. Again, this has been excellent. Thank you so much.

SPEAKER_02 12:56

It's been my pleasure, Julie. Thanks so much. Thanks for you.

SPEAKER_00 13:02

That's today's breath of fresh insight from airway focused dentistry with Dr. Mark A. Cruz. Remember, small changes in your airway can spark big changes in your life. Breathe, sleep, and be well. For more information, visit markacruzDDS.com or call 949-661-1006. If this helped you, share the episode and maybe give your fellow a quieter night. See you next time.