The goal of this surgery is to remove excess tissue located in the soft palate and at the same time tighten-up the resting tissue in the mouth. Although this is done now with assistance of laser, it can be done also with electrocautery and cold knife techniques. The soft palate is in a way sculpted by creating forms that resemble “trenches” around the uvula and reshaping the uvula itself.

This surgery is performed with anesthesia; however the person remains awake all the time. After it is completed, the doctor will have widened the size of the patient’s airway to increase the airflow and reduce any vibrations in the area that are producing the snoring sound. All the surgical procedure will take about 30 minutes and usually the patient can go home immediately unless the doctor requires the contrary.

Although many people think LAUP is the definitive answer to their problems, the truth is that sometimes a single procedure won’t give the expected results, and subsequent treatments will be needed (with a 4-8 weeks separation). There have been cases where patients have needed up to six surgeries for the treatment to be considered a success. OF course this also adds up in terms of costs.

LAUP is a type of surgery that do not have side effects of a serious nature, but like all surgeries it can have complications, the most common one being excessive bleeding. You need to talk all about this and how you can avoid complications in a private consultation with your surgeon.

LAUP will also require post-surgery care in order to help you recover perfectly from the surgery; the doctor will give you antibiotics and painkillers to speed up the recovery process and you will have to follow a liquid diet for the first days after LAUP. You will also need to take care of your swollen throat by doing things like sleeping at a 45 degree angle to reduce blood flow on the area. If you do physical activities, know that they will be limited for approximately a month.

Uvulopalatoplasty surgery is not a solution aimed to work for everyone; in order to see if it will be helpful in your particular case, you will need consultations with specialized doctors.