Sleep structure, biological rhythms, and sleep habits dynamically change during the period from birth to adolescence. These changes often lead to a variety of sleep-related problems that both the individual and family members struggle to deal with. This article lists three examples commonly encountered at school, in daily life, and in dental practice, and outlines the characteristics of children’s sleep, the background, and solutions for sleep problems. In addition, the concept of “sleep health,” which not only aims to reduce sleep problems and symptoms, but also focuses on prevention and improving mental and physical wellbeing, is addressed. The opportunity to consult a dentist to improve oral hygiene and ensure a safe delivery increases during the prenatal period, as well as after delivery to ensure the healthy development of the infant. Dentists play a significant role in sleep health among children and their families.

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Some key features including both anatomical （i.e., craniofacial） and non-anatomical factors are involved in the pathogenesis and development of obstructive sleep apnea （OSA）. Since craniofacial factors are visible whereas non-anatomical factors routinely require laborious studies and complicated equipment for quantitative evaluation, dentists may be able to detect OSA by understanding the background craniofacial characteristics of OSA. Obese individuals with excessive soft tissue inside the oral cavity do not necessarily develop OSA if the jaw size is large relative to the amount of soft tissue. Conversely, an obese patient is highly likely to have OSA when the jaw size is not sufficiently large relative to the tongue size, a phenomenon called “oropharyngeal crowding.” This review highlights the anatomical balance theory to account for the underlying mechanisms of oropharyngeal crowding in OSA.

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This glossary compiles selected terms related to sleep medicine and brief explanations of these terms provided by the Technical Term Committee of the Japanese Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. We hope to establish standardized terms related to dental sleep medicine for dentists, researchers and sleep dentistry students involved in the treatment of sleep-disordered breathing.

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