Surgery and other sleep apnea cures

Howdy! In today's post I'll tell you about upper airways surgery as a sleep apnea cure. There are various nasal, throat, and jaw types of surgery. The fact is that they can help some but not all people with sleep apnea or snoring. More than that, there are better sleep apnea cures that should be considered first. Among them there are: medications, weight loss, change of sleep position, avoidance of alcohol and smoking before sleep, oral appliances. The most common sleep apnea cure for most people with obstructive sleep apnea is CPAP that I talked about last time. For some people suffering from obstructive sleep apnea these options will not work. Generally speaking, these people have a physical abnormality that is blocking their upper airways. In these cases surgery may be the only choice as it reduces or eliminate the tissue in the throat.

Upper airway surgery is site-specific and depending on the cause of obstruction it focuses on the soft palate, the uvula, tonsils, adenoids or the tongue. There are also more complex surgeries that are performed with the adjustment of other bone structures - the mouth, nose and facial bones.

There is no guarantee that this sleep apnea cure will solve your problem at once as more than one operation may be needed. There are also several side effects such as overnight hospital stay, pain, having the jaws wired shut (for several weeks), swelling throat, etc. Moreover, surgery as a sleep apnea cure may not be permanent and the problem may reoccur in course of time.

As I have already said that it is highly recommended to consider other possible sleep apnea cures first. Anyways, you should consult with an Ear, Nose and Throat surgeon to find out if this is the best option for you.