{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The DOC Podcast","title":"Tragedy, Resilience, and a Mission to Transform Orthodontics (w/Dr. Bret Christensen) [Ep.175]","html":"<iframe width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https://share.transistor.fm/e/aa12d992\"></iframe>","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":6658,"description":"Dr. Bret Christensen is an Army veteran, orthodontist, and one of only five orthodontists in the country board-certified in sleep medicine through the American Sleep & Breathing Academy. He owns and operates Christensen Orthodontics with locations in Lewiston, Grangeville, and Moscow, Idaho. In this emotional and wide-ranging episode, Bret opens up about losing his son, surviving a widow-maker heart attack at 45, undergoing open-heart surgery and getting a pacemaker, all while transforming his practice from traditional extraction-based orthodontics to a data-driven, airway-focused approach. \nHe shares thousands of patient records showing that skeletal expansion dramatically improves nasal airway volume, his discovery that toddlers as young as two-and-a-half can be treated, and why he believes the AAO is standing in the way of progress. Plus, a surprise visit from his granddaughter Everly - the child who changed everything.\n⏱️ Timestamps / Chapters\n\n0:00 — Cold Open\n0:13 — Introduction & Guest Bio\n2:53 — Farm Kid Roots & Education\n7:16 — Military Career & Orthodontics\n11:32 — Building a Practice from Scratch\n13:48 — The Shift from Extraction to Expansion\n17:05 — Discovering Sleep Apnea Through His Father\n21:02 — Surviving a Widow-Maker Heart Attack\n25:55 — Training in Sleep Apnea & The Rhinometer\n31:35 — Meeting Kevin Boyd & Airway Health Solutions\n33:38 — Adult Expansion: Schwartz to MARPE\n43:12 — Patient Transformations\n56:34 — Host's Reflection on the Journey\n68:46 — The AAO Pushback & Speaking Out\n78:52 — Everly's Story: Treating Toddlers\n89:58 — Orthodontists Need to Become Doctors\n1:43:59 — Surprise Visit from Everly\n1:49:34 — Closing & What's Next\nKEY TOPICS: Early orthodontic intervention • MARPE for adults • Rhinometry data on thousands of patients • Nasal volume changes (3-8 cubic centimeters) • Treating children as young as 2-3 years old • The connection between sleep apnea and heart disease • Overcoming professional opposition • The future of...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/Wf6VIMhB_ulpfJzsJlix0BOF0i4W9yk8xxJ6-5X1Y6E/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9zaG93/LzQxOTI3LzE2OTg2/MzExNDktYXJ0d29y/ay5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}