Snoring Surgery – The Last Options to Cure Snoring
If you have tried medication from your doctor as well as over the counter remedies to try and help cure snoring and you have little or no success, the next step to consider is snoring surgery. Snoring should not be taken lightly as it can lead to other health problems .
There are several different types of surgical procedures available to either ease or stop your snoring. Your ear, nose and throat specialist will work closely with you to decide which surgery should work best for you. It all depends on the reason why you snore as to which procedure will be carried out.
Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty(UPPP) is a common type of snoring surgery carried out on patients with obstructive sleep apnoea. Tissue is removed from the back of the throat which widens the airways making breathing easier. Success rates for this type of operation vary from person to person, depending on their weight and other health problems but most patients showed a significant improvement in snoring once the throat had completely healed.
Somnoplasty Radiofrequency ablation : Thermal ablation is regularly carried out as an out patient treatment so this is ideal if you are unable to stay in hospital for whatever reason. This radio frequency current procedure is carried out while you are awake and sitting up. A probe is placed in the mouth which emits low radio frequency to selected areas at the back of the throat which manipulates the soft tissue. This treatment has a fast healing rate and is successful in around 70% of patients. Side effects are a slight sore throat, difficulty swallowing, and frequency in regurgitation of food. Your taste and smell may also be affected although this is rare.
Pharyngoplasty : This procedure is performed in a hospital surgery center under general anesthesia. This snoring surgery procedure is usually combined with a tonsillectomy where tonsils and tissue is removed and the soft palate is repositioned and minimal amount of tissue is removed as compared to uvulopalatopharyngoplasty or uvolopalatal flap . The purpose of this operation is to increase the size of the airways without compromising the breathing, swallowing or speaking functions. This surgery offers advantages to other types of operations as tonsils are removed at the same time.
Laser-Assisted Uvuloplatoplasty (LAUP) : is performed under local or general anaesthetic and is considered to be a safer, more economical compare to laser assisted uvulopalaplasty where they can be treated at an out patients clinic. Local anaesthetic is used to numb the throat and a laser is used to remove the uvula and trim the soft palate. This usually takes around half an hour and snoring is reduced or eliminated altogether. Around 80% of patients only required one laser treatment to reduce or eliminate snoring.
Maxillomandibular Advancement surgery : People with serious obstructive sleep apnoea are usually recommended for maxillomandibular advancement surgery where the bottom and top parts of the jaw are moved forward to reposition the tongue. If successful, the tongue stays relaxed during sleep and prevents snoring. Patients who undergo this procedure have normally been rigorously assessed to monitor their breathing and sleep patterns for several months beforehand to establish their suitability for this operation.
Palatal implants( Pillar procedure) In this procedure, a doctor inserts 3 short pieces of polyester string into the soft palate. The implant helps reduce the vibration and movement of the soft palate.The procedure can be performed in a doctor s office and takes about 10 minutes. Unlike uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), the pillar procedure requires only local anesthesia.
Specialists will only decide on a surgical procedure if everything else has failed. Your sleep patterns and breathing will be carefully monitored and recorded before any decisions are made. Unfortunately, sometimes surgery is the only thing which will work for snoring. Many of these procedures take place in a clinic and you are free to go about your normal business afterwards while others may require a short hospital stay. Snoring surgery is certainly worth serious consideration, especially if you are one of the thousands of people affected by obstructive sleep apnoea. Indeed, undergoing any kind of snoring surgery could substantially improve your life and that of your partners.
