OMT in Pediatric Airway & Sleep-Disordered Breathing
Learn to recognize, assess, and treat the pediatric airway patient through the lens of orofacial myofunctional therapy.
Instructor
Kristie Gatto, MA, CCC-SLP, Certified Orofacial Myologist, #162
Prerequisites: Basic anatomy of the orofacial system; clinical experience with pediatric populations preferred
Register for the Course
Children with sleep-disordered breathing often present long before a diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea.
Mouth breathing, low tongue posture, poor lip seal, non-nutritive sucking habits, altered craniofacial growth, and dysfunctional oral habits can all influence airway development, behavior, sleep quality, feeding, and long-term health.
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Many clinicians recognize these patterns.
Far fewer know how to bring them together into a structured clinical approach.
This course was developed to bridge pediatric sleep medicine and orofacial myofunctional therapy, giving clinicians an evidence-based framework for evaluating pediatric airway dysfunction, designing treatment plans, collaborating with interdisciplinary providers, and improving long-term patient outcomes.
Designed for clinicians treating pediatric airway disorders
Whether you work in speech pathology, dentistry, occupational therapy, physical therapy, medicine, or another pediatric specialty, you'll learn how airway function influences craniofacial growth and how OMT can become an important part of comprehensive care.
This course is for:
- Speech Language Pathologists
- Pediatric Dentists and Orthodontists
- Occupational Therapists
- Physical Therapists
- Physicians
- Pediatric Sleep Medicine providers
What You'll Learn:
By the end of this course you'll be able to:
Differentiate the pediatric sleep-disordered breathing spectrum from primary snoring through obstructive sleep apnea.
Recognize clinical signs of mouth breathing, low tongue posture, poor lip competence, and altered craniofacial growth.
Perform comprehensive pediatric orofacial myofunctional assessments.
Determine when children are appropriate candidates for OMT.
Build age-appropriate treatment programs for toddlers, school-aged children, and adolescents.
Create engaging home exercise programs that improve compliance.
Monitor functional outcomes using validated pediatric measures.
Work collaboratively with pediatric dentists, ENTs, orthodontists, physicians, and other members of the airway team.
Educate families using practical, evidence-based recommendations.
Understand when referral is indicated and where OMT fits within interdisciplinary care.
Course Curriculum
Choose to purchase the entire course, or a single module.
Modules 1-6
OMT in Pediatric Airway & Sleep-Disordered Breathing
This course is designed for clinicians who work with children experiencing sleep-disordered breathing, mouth breathing, low tongue posture, and related craniofacial growth concerns. It bridges the clinical gap between pediatric sleep medicine and orofacial myofunctional therapy, providing evidence-based frameworks for assessment, treatment design, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
Register for the Full CourseÂ
Choose to purchase the entire course (above), or a single module (below).
Module 1
Pediatric Sleep-Disordered Breathing
Understand the spectrum of pediatric airway disorders, current screening tools, and how untreated sleep-disordered breathing influences growth, behavior, learning, and overall development.
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Module 2
Craniofacial Growth, Mouth Breathing & Low Tongue Posture
Learn how oral posture influences facial development, identify critical periods of growth, and understand how airway dysfunction affects skeletal development.
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Module 3
Pediatric OMT Assessment
Develop a systematic pediatric evaluation process including airway screening, oral habit assessment, tongue posture, swallowing, lip seal, tonsil grading, and standardized documentation.
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Module 4
Exercise Design for Children
Build structured pediatric treatment programs using age-appropriate exercises, developmental progressions, play-based activities, and post-frenectomy rehabilitation strategies.
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Module 5
Measuring Clinical Outcomes
Track treatment progress using validated outcome measures while documenting meaningful functional change throughout therapy.
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Module 6
Interdisciplinary Airway Care
Improve communication with pediatric dentists, orthodontists, ENTs, physicians, and other providers while developing collaborative treatment pathways.
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Supplemental Module
Parent Education & Long-Term Success
Learn practical strategies that improve caregiver participation, increase home program adherence, reduce relapse, and support long-term maintenance.
Add Supplemental Module to CartThis Course Includes
- Approximately 10 hours of continuing education
- Eight comprehensive learning modules
- Downloadable clinical forms
- Pediatric assessment templates
- Treatment protocols
- Family education resources
- Age-specific exercise demonstrations
- Pediatric case studies
- Module quizzes
- Final examination
- Certificate of completion upon successful course completion
- Six months of course access
Evidence-Based Clinical Education
This course integrates current literature from pediatric sleep medicine, craniofacial development, and orofacial myofunctional therapy into practical clinical application.
Rather than focusing only on exercises, you'll learn why they work, when they're appropriate, how to sequence intervention, and how to measure meaningful change over time.
Continuing Education
Participants who complete all required coursework and achieve the minimum passing score will receive a certificate of completion. Continuing education credit applications are in process.
