Treat Snoring

Surgery to Stop Snoring Should Be the Last Approach You Try

May 14th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed

Well over half of all adults snore a few times a week. Not only is this particularly troubling to the snorer’s partner, but snoring can also be a signal of serious health issues. Likewise, snoring itself is a result of health problems such as obesity.

There are various ways to remedy a snoring problem, however the best approach also depends on what the cause of the snoring it. For example, if snoring is the result of obesity, then losing weight should cease the snoring and put the sufferer at less risk of other complications that are also a result of being overweight. Also, exercising the jaw and other muscles in the face can stop snoring. If these approaches don’t work, there are several stop-devices that may be effective.

You might benefit from surgery to stop snoring. There are three main types of surgery to stop snoring: Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP), Radio-Frequency Ablation (Somnoplasty) and Palatal Stiffening (CAPSO).

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP)

The first type of surgery to stop snoring is Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP). The goal of this surgical procedure is to increase the width of the oropharynx. When UPPP is performed, the uvula and pharyngeal arches are removed, as are part of the soft palette and, on occasion, the tonsils. It is performed under a general anesthetic and is known for the potential to cause long-term complications, such as severe pain after operation, nasopharyngeal regurgitation, a partial loss of taste, permanent voice changes, and palatal dryness.

Somnoplasty

Somnoplasty, or radio-frequency ablation, is another type of surgery to stop snoring, and it aims to shrink the redundant tissue of the soft palette and can be performed in a mere 20 minutes. During the procedure, the inner tissue is heated to 85 degrees Celsius, which could cause the tissue to scar. However, these scars have little or no effect on the surrounding tissues. Somnoplasty is performed under a general anesthesia, and it does not have as many complications as other procedures. However, it is still a relatively new procedure and many people have found its success rate to be lower than that of other procedures, especially in obese people.

Palatal Stiffening – But Only If Exercises Fail

Another form of surgery to stop snoring is palatal stiffening. This type of surgery is similar to Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UUUP), but much simpler because it merely involves burning tissue in the throat to stiffen it. The only major difficulty is that there is some pain involved. If the first procedure doesn’t yield sufficient results, the sufferer can return to have the procedure repeated until the snoring ceases. Of course some natural approaches attempt to strengthen that tissue through exercises in order to stop the snoring. You would definitely want to try that before attempting surgery.