ABOUT DR. HANG

If you’re on “the CE journey” in search of a better way to treat patients, then Dr. Hang’s letter is a must-read. Dr. Hang’s 50-year clinical journey taught him valuable lessons that inspired him to become a mentor, just like his mentors did for him. His passion for mentoring is evident, and his story of perseverance, dedication, and inspiration will undoubtedly resonate with you. Take the time to read it now and get inspired.
Dr. Hang's Letter
My biggest accomplishment as a young boy growing up in the Midwestern United States was becoming an Eagle Scout. I was a kid who believed in doing my very best and following the rules.
In High School, I studied hard and got good grades. When the time came for me to think about a career, I considered going into medicine, but didn’t want the “life and death” responsibilities that came along with being a doctor. Dentistry seemed like the perfect alternative. I loved working with my hands and I could be a “Doctor” without the stress of “practicing medicine”.
At the time, I could never have imagined how wrong my assumptions about dentistry, orthodontics and the healthcare profession would turn out to be. After I graduated from the University of Illinois in 1970, I served as a general dentist in The United States Air Force for two years then went on to the University of Minnesota for my orthodontic training.
I taught Orthodontics at Minnesota for a year after graduating then opened a private practice in rural Vermont. My plan was to earn a comfortable living as the town orthodontist and live a quiet life “away from the world”. And for 6 years, everything went the way I thought it would. The practice was successful. Life was good. I treated my patients exactly the way I had been taught in school. I waited for the permanent teeth to come in before I started treatment. I routinely ordered extractions to “make room” for the remaining teeth then used headgears and retractive

DR. Hang’s Expertise

Education
  • 1970 – BS University of Illinois
  • 1970 – DDS with honors University of Illinois – Alpha Omega Award for graduating number 1 out of a class of 92; Omicron Kappa Upsilon Dental Honorary
  • 1974 – MSD in Orthodontics University of Minnesota
Faculty Appointments
  • 1974-74 – Assistant Professor of Orthodontics University of Minnesota
Practice
  • 1970-1972 – General dentist United States Air Force
  • 1975-1996 – Private practice Rutland, Vermont
  • 1976-1996 – Cleft Palate Panel for Southern Vermont
  • 1997 to present – Private practice Westlake Village and Agoura Hills, California.
Professional Affiliations
  • Foundation for Airway Health – Member
  • California Dental Association – Member
  • California Association of Orthodontists – Member
  • American Dental Association – Member
  • American Association of Orthodontists – Lifetime Member
  • American Academy of Craniofacial Pain – Member
  • Academy of Applied Myofunctional Sciences – Member
  • North American Association of Facial Orthotropics® – Member, Founding President
  • International Association of Facial Growth Guidance – Member
  • American Association of Physiological Medicine and Dentistry – Member, Board Member
  • Academy of Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy – Member, Advisory Board Member
Lecturing
Local, national, and international speaker on topics including the Orthotropics® technique, orthodontics and the Posterior Airway Space, guidance of tooth eruption and prevention of tooth impaction, facial esthetics, and obstructive sleep apnea’s relationship to facial development at venues including the Yankee Dental Congress, American Association of Orthodontists, University of California San Francisco, Medical College of Virginia, South Dakota Society of Orthodontists, West Michigan Academy of General Dentistry Study Club, University of Texas Orthodontic Alumni Association, Harvard University School of Dentistry Orthodontic Program, Stanford University School of Medicine Sleep Center, University of Southern California Odontic Study Group, North American Society for the Study of Orthodontics, Spanish Society for Facial Growth Guidance, International Association of Facial Growth Guidance Symposiums, American Academy of Craniofacial Pain, International Association for Orthodontics, American Academy of Gnathological Orthopedics, Northern California Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, International Association for Orofacial Myology, International Association of Comprehensive Aesthetics, Academy for Comprehensive Esthetics, LVI Study Clubs, Canadian Chapter of the American Academy of Craniofacial Pain, The Academy of Clinical Sleep Disorders Disciplines, The American Association of Physiological Medicine and Dentistry, Australian Chapter of the American Academy of Craniofacial Pain, University of the Pacific Dental Alumni Association, Academy of Applied Myofunctional Sciences, The American Academy for Oral Systemic Health, The Weston Price Foundation, The Dental Solution Australia, Institut Georges Portmann, The Star of the South Dental Meeting, Dental Ceramics USA, American Equilibration Society, Eastern Washington Medical/Dental Summit IV, San Joaquin Dental Society, American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, California Dental Association, International Association for Orthodontics, Poland, University of Valencia, Ottawa Dental Association.
Recent Lecture Titles
  • “AIRWAY-kening™; Dentistry…To Become the Center of Health Care”
  • “Orthodontic Success in the Coming Post-Retraction World”
  • “Orthodontics & Restorative Dentistry – Partnering for Optimal Airway Health”
  • “Why OSA Would Not Exist”
  • “Facial & Airway Development for All Ages”
  • “Does Orthodontics As Well As Nutrition and Growth Affect the Airway?”
  • “Myo + Ortho: A Collaborative Preventive Health Care Model”
  • “Can Facial Growth Be Changed To Impact Health and Longevity?”
  • “Surgical & Non-Surgical Orthodontics in the Coming Post-Retraction World”
  • “Orthodontics & Dentistry – Partnering for Optimal Airway Health”
  • “AIRWAY-kening™ Orthodontics for All Ages”
  • “Can Orthodontics Cause OSA? Cure OSA? Or Both?”
  • “You Can’t Expand Your Way Out of an Antero-Posterior Problem”
  • Journey From Non-Believer to Outspoken Advocate of Myofunctional Therapy”
  • “Airway & The Role of Orthodontics in Complete Health”
Publishing
  • “Canine Impaction Identified Early with Panoramic Radiographs” Lindauer, Rubenstein, Hang, Anderson, Isaacson; Journal of the American Dental Association, March 1992
  • “The Magic Number” Hang; Ortodoncia Clinica, No. 1, Vol. 1, 1998
  • “Impact on Facial Esthetics of Using Broad vs. Narrow Orthodontic Archwire Forms” Hang; Ortodoncia Clinica, No. 2, Vol. 1, 1998
  • “Facial Esthetic Changes Resulting from Re-opening Previously Closed Orthodontic Extraction Spaces” Hang; Ortodoncia Clinica, No. 1, Vol. 2, 1999
  • “From Crowding to Headaches to OSA: Orthodontics’ 20 Year Metamorphosis from Smile Making to Life Saving” Hang; The Journal – American Academy of Gnathologic Orthopedics, Vol. 22, Number 4, 2005
  • “Surgery With and Without a Scalpel” Hang; The Journal – American Academy of Gnathologic Orthopedics, Vol. 22, Number 4, 2005
  • “How Many Years Must a Profession Exist…?” Hang; The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice, April 2006, Vol. 24, No. 2
  • “Exploring Our Future Roles of Orofacial Myology – Becoming a Front Line Warrior in Health Care” International Association of Orofacial Myology Newsletter, September, 2006
  • “Evaluation of the Posterior /Airway Space Following Biobloc Therapy: Geometric Morphometrics”, The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice, April 2007, Vol. 25, No. 2
  • “Obstructive Sleep Apnea: Dentistry’s Unique Role in Longevity Enhancement”, Journal of the American Orthodontic Society, Spring 2007.
  • “Reversing Retractive Orthodontics with Biobloc Orthotropics®”, The Journal of Gnathologic Orthopedics and Facial Orthotropics, Dec 2013, Vol. 30, No. 4
  • “Airway Centric® TMJ Philosophy/Airway Centric® Orthodontics Ushers in the Post-Retraction World of Orthodontics”, The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice, March 2017, Vol. 35, No. 2
  • “AIRWAY-kening™ Orthodontic Treatment for All Ages”, oralhealth, Mar 2018
  • “AIRWAY-kening™ Orthodontic/Orthopedic Development: A Correlation of Facial Balance, TMD, and Airway for All Ages”, Temporomandibular Joint and Airway Disorders – A Translational Perspective. Springer. Demerjian, G. Gary, Barkhordarian, Andre, Chiappelli, Francesco Editors.
  • “Lingual Frenuloplasty with Myofunctional Therapy: Exploring Safety and Efficacy in 348 Cases”, Zaghi, Valcu-Pinkerton, Jabara, Norouz-Knutsen, Govardhap, Moeller, Sinkus, Thorse, Downing, Camacho, Yoon, Hang, Hockel, Guilleminault, Liu; Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology, 2019.
Miscellaneous
  • Appeared on London, England’s Channel 4 “Tooth Troubles” aired 12/2/99 (British equivalent of “Sixty Minutes”) which explored differences in facial esthetics of traditional orthodontics vs. postural orthodontics
  • Developed an educationally oriented website (www.facefocused.com)
  • Developed the Hang Expancer – patent granted
  • Developed the Hang Clasp – patent granted
  • Developed the ADAPT-LGR® – patent granted
  • Dr. Hang teaches the Orthotropics® technique to optimize facial development of young children in a four session mini-residency for orthodontists and general dentists with students from throughout the world.
  • Dr. Hang presents 2-day lectures on the diagnosis, treatment planning, and treatment execution of adolescent and adult cases to optimize esthetics, function, and longevity called “Orthodontic Success in the Coming Post-Retraction World”.
  • Dr. Hang has patients come from 20 states and 5 foreign countries for his unique treatment.
  • Dr. Hang presents 2-day lectures with oral surgeon Dr. Reza Movahed on the diagnosis, treatment planning and treatment execution of surgery cases to optimize esthetics, function, and often eliminate OSA called “Surgical & Non-Surgical Orthodontics in the Post-Retraction World”.
  • Dr. Hang was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the AAPMD “For a Lifetime of Dedication, Innovation and Courage Developing Techniques & Education in Airway Orthodontics and Changing the Lives of Practitioners and Patients”.
  • Identified a new syndrome: Extraction Retraction Regret Syndrome™ (E.R.R.S.™) – The PREVENTABLE & REVERSIBLE SyndromeAdd: Dr. Hang was awarded The AAMS Louis Pasteur Award for Courage and Leadership in Advancing Medicine via Myofunctional Sciences.
  • Various podcasts/interviews for: Dr Steven Park, dentistry uncensored, Extreme Health Radio, Future Tech, Functional Oral Health Summit, AAPMD, OSA University, Sleep Certified, A Tale of Two Hygienists.

Dr. Hang’s lecture schedule includes speaking to large and small groups in many different disciplines of dentistry, orthodontics & medicine.

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Dr. Hang’s treatments Are designed to:

  • Develop the jaws forward, never backward
  • Create better facial balance & more pleasing facial appearance
  • Protect and/or expand the airway
  • Produce broad smiles that are complete to the corners of the mouth

Optimizing forward facial growth to prevent airway problems in children age 10 and under with special emphasis on treating under age 6

Fundamentals
Ongoing

Optimizing airway in patients ages 10 to 110 with innovative, non-retractive approaches and reversing retraction of previous treatment

E.R.R.S.™

Dr. Hang’s CV/Resume

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Dr. Hang’s Speaking
Events/Schedule

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