Sleep Apnea Surgery: A Quick Description of 9 Popular Options

It’s a fact: sleep disorders affect a large percentage of the U.S. (and global) population. A few of the most common disorders include insomnia, persistent sleep deprivation, restless legs syndrome, and obstructive sleep apnea.

While there are various options for sleep apnea treatment, surgery for sleep apnea is at times the only treatment of choice, when every other form of therapy has proved to be futile.

If you too have been recommended for sleep apnea surgery, the first thing you need to know about the various surgical options available for treating sleep apnea is that the type of surgery you should choose is based on two factors: (1) your anatomical structure, and (2) the severity of sleep apnea.

Though somnoplasty has been used to treat sleep apnea, there are many people who want a single surgery to cure their condition. Since somnoplasty may require more than one treatment session, some do not consider this as a viable sleep apnea surgery option.

Common Sleep Apnea Surgery Procedures

Here are the different types of sleep apnea surgery and some brief details about each of them:

• Nasal airway surgery: This type of sleep apnea surgery is most effective to improve the functionality of CPAP. At times nasal obstructions make it impossible for the CPAP to remain effective.

• Palate implants: This is the recommended mode of sleep apnea surgery for people who are suffering from sleep apnea caused by palatal collapse.

• Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP): Essentially, this is a type of sleep apnea surgery that aims to prevent the collapse of the palate, tonsils and the pharynx. Not designed for obese people, this type of surgery is recommended for people with large tonsils or uvula or a long and wide palate. This form of surgery has a 50 to 60% success rate in reducing or preventing sleep apnea.

• For sleep apnea treatment, many doctors consider tongue reduction surgery, especially when the area of collapse is located between the base of the tongue and the pharynx. Most of these procedures including laser midline glossectomy are done as an addition to other surgical procedures.

• In combination with UPPP there is another type of sleep apnea surgery performed called genioglossus advancement. The genioglossus muscle is located at the base of the tongue and it attaches this area to the front inside of the jaw bone. This muscle may relax during sleep and cause air passage obstruction. This type of sleep apnea surgery typically pulls the base of the tongue forward by about 4 mm by detaching the part of the jaw where the muscle is attached.

• The other option for surgery for sleep apnea includes a procedure called hyoid suspension that is done in conjunction with other types of surgeries like UPPP or genioglossus advancement.

• Maxillomandibular advancement is yet another surgical option for treating sleep apnea. The aim of this surgery is to move the jaw and upper teeth forward. This simultaneously pulls the palate and base of the tongue forward. This procedure is considered to be best for thin patients who have a small jaw line.

• There is a way to bypass the narrowed air passage called tracheostomy. This type of sleep apnea surgery is usually recommended for severely obese patients who do not respond to any other treatment.

• The other surgical option for treating sleep apnea for patients who are morbidly obese is bariatric surgery.