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More than ever, the dentist is compelled to provide more than just dentally related services and as such is becoming involved with not only the oral health of the patient but also with their overall health. A commentary in the Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) called for an increase in the education of the dentist in biological and medical sciences [32]. In this chapter, a direct reference to medical topics that may be related to the dentist that appeared in JADA from 2004 to 2006 included such topics as diabetes, heart disease, CVDs, and sleep apnea. In another commentary by Dr. Michael Glick in JADA describes the potential for the dentist to inform patients about risk factors for CVD is possible [33], as well as many other health and medically related disorders.

Table 1.3 Common health issues associated with sleep disorders.

Painful conditions	Headaches
Arthritis	Fibromyalgia
Anxiety or depression	Hyperthyroidism/hypothyroidism
Pregnancy	Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or acid reflux
Medication usage	Cardiovascular disease
Hypertension	Diabetes
Obesity	Periodontal disease

Regardless of the role the dentist assumes, the initial action needs to start with the recognition of those who may be at risk for or have a health problem that may have an underlying sleep disorder as a contributing factor. Having an awareness of these relationships has the potential to be beneficial to the overall health of people and to improve their QOL.