Snoring Surgery Info

Snoring is certainly a tough condition to have because not only it affects your sleep, but if you have a partner or spouse, they may be suffering too from the loud noise during the night. One option to get rid of this is through snoring surgery. The most common type of procedure used is LAUP, however there is a method known as Somnoplasty that has helped many people reduce their snoring levels. Read on to learn more about it.

Somnoplasty was developed as an alternative to snoring surgery without the pain and discomfort that traditional surgical methods brought; the goal of the procedure id to remove tissues of the uvula and the soft palate so there is a better flow of air during the night, eliminating the vibrations that cause the distinctive sound of snoring. This procedure is done under complete control monitoring every important aspect in detail; the low levels of radiofrequency heat energy also give the doctor the complete control needed for this operation.

Somnoplasty is performed in an outpatient setting using local anesthesia: before commencing the procedure, the doctor will use orals pray in the mouth to numb the area and then apply three small injections in the roof of the mouth; thanks to the oral spray you’ll only feel a minor discomfort when the injections are applied. The whole procedure takes usually less than 15 minutes and is done with the help of the Somnus gun device which delivers controlled thermal energy to the uvula and soft palate.

Once Somnoplasty is finished, you’ll need to take proper care of the area using directed over-the-counter analgesics. Know that immediately after surgery, snoring may get worse as the tissues are swollen and enlarged; improvement will become noticeable after a couple of weeks and with months the results will keep improving. It is also recommended you sleep with your head elevated for several nights after the treatment.

Somnoplasty Complications

As with any type of surgery, you run the risk of encountering complications. Although the great majority of cases are considered a success, you should weigh the risks by responsibly learning about these potential complications:

Failure to eliminate snoring problems. In these cases another more aggressive surgery may be needed.
Inability to cure sleep apnea and related problems.
Change in pitch of the voice, velopharyngeal insufficiency and nasal regurgitation. These are rare complications but are still a possibility.
Prolonged infection, pain and even bleeding.
Somnoplasty can also result in tissue loss by burn.

When we talk about snoring surgery, we are not talking about a single procedure that cures completely your snoring problems. Instead we are talking about different options that will treat different causes of the problem; that is why it is of extreme importance to determine the cause of your snoring and check if it is related to sleep apnea. This is done through a complete evaluation and in some cases a sleep study which can also determine the severity of sleep apnea.

There are different situations that can trigger snoring during the night, including nasal congestion, deviated nasal septum, your sleeping position (flat on your back), blocked nasal passages, excess weight and drinking alcoholic beverages before going to sleep. Knowing the cause will help you a lot in finding a solution and you can avoid surgery altogether. In some cases, though, a snoring surgery may be the only option left to minimize problems. Most current procedures can be done at the doctor’s office using local anesthesia.

A snoring surgery is not a 100% effective solution, according to some specialized publications, after performing the surgery patients experience good short-term results that do not completely erase the problem but minimize it in a great percentage; however as time passes the long-term results start to decrease as the body becomes accustomed to the changes. Let’s take a look at some of the procedures that are currently used as a snoring surgery.

Laser-Assisted Uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP). This is the most commonly-used snoring surgery. In this procedure, the doctor will use Co2 laser to cut away the uvula. The vast majority of patients will require more than one surgery of this type for it to be considered a success. Usually you will need around 1 – 5 treatments and each one of them has its own cost. This happens with many of the alternatives for snoring surgery, and of course each session has its own expenses. LAUP is a variation of UPPP a similar procedure which is considered to be painful.

Coblation-Channeling. This is the newest snoring surgery and it was approved by the FDA in 2000. It can be used for snoring using radio frequency energy to shrink tissue located in the airway, it can also completely remove it.

Radio Frequency Tissue Ablation (RFTA). This treatment was approved in the year 1997 and it is also aimed at shrinking the uvula. You will find this procedure more commonly under its trade name: Somnoplasty. More than one treatment may be needed.

Tongue Suspension Procedure. Also known as Repose, its goal is to keep the tongue from falling back on the airway while you sleep, using a small screw on the lower jaw bone. This is a bit more invasive snoring surgery that might be needed in just some cases.

In addition to these treatments, you might also benefit for nasal surgery aimed at removing obstructions causing the snoring sound. It is very important to undergo proper consultation with your doctor; doctors who deal with these kinds of problems and know all about snoring surgery are otolaryngologists and oral and maxillofacial surgeons.

Avoiding snoring is just as important as learning how to stop snoring in your life; by knowing how to avoid snoring you’ll know beforehand what you need to do to live a life free of night sounds, enjoy a better quality of sleep and give others also a good night’s sleep. We’ll talk here at the key ways to avoid this problem by deriving them from the main causes of snoring.

Keep your weight under control. Did you know that a huge percentage of snoring cases appear because of excess weight? Well, now you know! So if you are planning to eat everything in your site consider that among the vast array of negative effects of obesity, one of them is snoring. Fat storage takes places in different parts of the body and one of them is the tissues around the throat. The fatter they are, the more difficult it would be for air to pass through the airways without causing vibrations. If you are overweight and with snoring problems, try dropping a few pounds and check if this has had a good effect on your problem. Most people learn how to avoid snoring this way.

Avoid alcohol and certain medications before sleep-time. During sleep our muscles and tissues in the throat area naturally relax, but if we take alcohol and certain medications we can cause an over-relaxation of such tissues, blocking the airways and producing the infamous snoring vibrations. Avoiding altogether alcohol is of course the best option if you want to know how to avoid snoring but in any case; try to limit your consumption.

Avoid sleeping on your back. Specialists have studied different sleeping position and determined that the one that contributes the most for snoring is sleeping on your back. Now, I know people don’t consciously choose how they sleep, and many people despite efforts tend to shift back to their common sleeping positions during the night. If you want to know how to avoid snoring you can use a couple of tricks. One of them is using a tennis ball and putting it in the back pocket of your pajamas. This nice anti-snoring trick will be helpful if you want to shift to a “sleeping-on-your-back” position during the night; you will the discomfort and unconsciously choose one more comfortable. Another trick is to use an anti snoring pillow, many of them are designed so you’ll find the most comfort sleeping on your sides and some of them, when you are on your back modify the neck in such a way that the airways remain fully open.