Numerous treatment procedures apply to sleep apnea. All these treatments aim at helping sleep apnea sufferers to gain consistently uninterrupted breathing motions whilst sleeping. This article aims to help those people having problems with sleep apnea that are unsure of how to eradicate their problem. Various treatments exist such as behavioral counseling through to continuous positive airway pressure mask use. Additionally there are surgical options, typically best reserved as a last attempt for people that have failed to react well to all other viable treatments.
The main goal when treating patients with sleep apnea is to stop pauses in breathing whilst asleep by keeping their airways open.
Of the variety of sleep apnea alleviating methods available there is:
'Behavioral therapy' includes weight loss and sleeping posture modifications in addition to simply avoiding CNS depressants and alcohol when within a few hours of going to sleep.
'Continuous positive airway pressure' (CPAP) is a non-invasive treatment tool effective at reducing or even eliminating snoring and sleep apnea. Pressurized air is gently blown through the sufferers nasal passage during the night, the pressure administered being sufficiently strong to stop the throat passageway collapsing whilst asleep.
Oral appliances exist that reposition the tongue and lower jaw. What results is the widening of the lower part of the throat which reduces sleep apnea. Tongue retaining devices exist that try to stop the tongue slipping back to block the airway. Mandibular advancement devices (MAD) move the lower jaw into an underbite position, again opening up the airways more.
'Uvulpalatopharyngoplasty' (UPPP) is a form of surgery seeking to reduce sleep apnea.
UPPP is the most typical of surgeries used to combat sleep apnea. The operation involved increasing the airways passage through the removal of all non-vital tissue e.g. adenoids, uvula and tonsils) from the pharynx.
Uvulopalatoplasty can be assisted with lasers (LAUP) and is performed within a specialized practice. A section of soft palate is removed, the uvula (hanging tissue found at the centre of the roof at the far end of the mouth) is shortened and the other excess tissues are also cut down in size.
A 'tracheostomy' is where a small incision is created in the trachea just below the area where it is blocked, a tube then being placed through this cut. The tube is only opened when the sleep apnea sufferers sleeping time. Air flows far more easily into the patients lungs due to it by-passing the throat obstruction.
'Radiofrequency ablation' (RFA) is a quite new technology aimed at harnessing the energy from radiofrequencies to enable soft palate, uvula and tongue tissue removal. The removal of oversized adenoids or tonsils is a viable option for children and adolescents, to help remove the problems of sleep apnea.
