Episode Summary:
In this episode of The DOC Podcast, I sit down with Dr. Hal Stewart, a Texas-based dentist who transformed his practice from a traditional, restorative-based practice to one with a holistic approach, focusing on airway and TMD health. We discuss what holistic dentistry really means, how airway dysfunction connects to malocclusion, TMD, posture, and systemic health, and why the dental profession needs a paradigm shift towards a more proactive model of healthcare.
Topics Covered:
- Dr. Stewart's Journey from Restorative Dentistry to Airway-Focused Practice — How a meticulous, low-volume approach to comprehensive dentistry evolved after discovering the connection between underdeveloped jaws, malocclusion, TMD, and airway dysfunction — driven in part by the personal loss of his father to Parkinson's linked to severe sleep apnea.
- The Multidisciplinary Team Approach & Diagnostic Framework — Why airway patients typically need 3-7 healthcare professionals, and Dr. Stewart's 5-zone diagnostic model (nasal passages, nasopharynx, oropharynx, oral cavity, and TMJ) for evaluating patients from a whole-body perspective while staying in his lane.
- The "Straight Teeth Bias" & Why the Profession Needs a Paradigm Shift — How orthodontic and dental training focuses narrowly on tooth-based outcomes, the gap between the ADA's 2017 airway screening recommendation and the AAO's more conservative stance, and the double standard around evidence-based practice.
- TMD, Airway & Posture: How It's All Connected — Dr. Stewart's clinical finding that over 90% of TMD patients have a comorbid airway component, how addressing airway has transformed his treatment outcomes, and the overlooked relationship between occlusion, cervical posture, and breathing.
- Advice for Practitioners & A Call for Professional Unity — Practical guidance for dentists wanting to incorporate airway into their practice, why every practitioner who discovers airway never goes back, and the importance of replacing intraprofessional criticism with respectful, interdisciplinary collaboration.
Key Quotes:
- "There are multiple ways to treat things, but there's only one correct diagnosis."
- "Anybody that goes down this path, they see the truth is so evident to them that they cannot go back."
- "We're not here to put other professionals down. We're just here to speak the truth."
Resources:
What is The DOC Podcast?
The DOC Podcast brings you unique educational content taught by Dr. Mike DeLuke, a Board Certified Orthodontist with over 20 years of clinical and academic experience. Dr. DeLuke built his orthodontic practice from scratch in the early 2000s and grew it into a multimillion-dollar enterprise in less than 10 years. He was able to retire from his private practice at the age of 46 years old, and now devotes his energy to teaching his colleagues how to succeed both personally and professionally. He also provides locum tenens coverage for colleagues in South Florida.
Dr. DeLuke has served as a faculty member at numerous hospitals and orthodontic residency programs around the country, including as the cleft craniofacial orthodontist at Albany Medical Center in New York, and as a clinical professor at The University of Connecticut in the Department of Orthodontics. He is presently an adjunct professor in the Department of Pediatric Dentistry at Healthcare Network and a Visiting Professor in the Department of Orthodontics at Montefiore Einstein Hospital in the Bronx.
The DOC Podcast will bring you in-depth discussions and interviews with industry leaders and experts on a variety of topics, including clinical excellence, practice management, finance and wealth creation, health and wellness, taxes and accounting, fitness, and much more!