3 Signs You Need Snoring Surgery

Snoring surgery is typically carried out by an ear, nose and throat specialist. The most common procedure is the somnoplasty, a procedure that uses heat to manipulate tissues in your throat to lessen the effect of snoring. In most cases, it can completely remove the sound of snoring but is typically used as a last resort once all other options have been exhausted. However, if you notice any of the following three signs, you may be a candidate for somnoplasty.

1. You’ve tried everything else, and surgery is the last resort

In most cases, your ENT specialist will recommend non-invasive methods of dealing with your snoring problem. For instance, they might recommend that you change your diet and start losing weight. Being out of shape does contribute to snoring because the fatty tissues and poor muscle tone around your neck change how air flows through your system, thus causing the vibrations that result in snoring. If you’ve exhausted other opportunities, then snoring surgery can be considered to alleviate your symptoms. Although effective and safe, there’s always a risk that comes with any procedure no matter how simple and routine it may be, and most people would prefer to try and work out their snoring issues on their own with natural means instead of relying on a surgical procedure.

2. Your partner, friend or family members are concerned about your sleeping habits

Although snoring itself isn’t a huge problem, it starts to get worrying once you start suspecting someone of having sleep apnea, not just snoring. Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder that is characterized by irregular breathing during sleep. This can cause strange snoring patterns due to how their breathing is interrupted throughout the night. While it can sound like irregular snoring, what’s actually happening is that the person might not be getting enough oxygen to their brain in their sleep. Obstructive sleep apnea is one more common form of sleep apnea and is caused by a blockage of the airway. This could be caused by something like the tissue in the back of the throat collapsing. Central sleep apnea is the less common form of sleep apnea. This is characterized by there being no physical blockages, but the brain still fails to send signals to the muscles to breathe. Both forms of sleep apnea are incredibly dangerous, and while snoring surgery isn’t the go-to solution that will fix it, it can help to identify the underlying cause of your snoring.

3. You have an irritable mood and wake up with headaches

A lack of sleep can cause you to have an irritable mood the next day, and it could also cause you to lose a lot of precious sleep. Once your sleeping disturbances begin to impact the rest of your life, it’s wise to consult an ENT to determine if you could benefit from snoring surgery. Excessive snoring at night could cause daytime fatigue; it could cause morning headaches and might even make it difficult for you to concentrate.