Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-8ctnn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-26T06:15:48.149Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Single dose injection snoreplasty: investigation or treatment?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 June 2008

A H Al-Jassim  and
T H J Lesser
A H Al-Jassim*
Affiliation:
ENT Department, University Hospital Aintree, Liverpool, UK
T H J Lesser
Affiliation:
ENT Department, University Hospital Aintree, Liverpool, UK
*
Address for correspondence: Mr A H Al-Jassim, ENT Directorate, University Hospital Aintree, Lower Lane, Liverpool L9 7AL, UK. E-mail: hadi035@hotmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Introduction:

Many surgical and nonsurgical procedures have been designed for the treatment of snoring due to palatal flutter. All work in some, but not all, snorers. The difficulty lies in making the definitive diagnosis of palatal flutter as the cause of snoring, and in deciding which patients should undergo which treatment, which in some cases are relatively radical.

Aims:

This study aimed to assess the usefulness of injection snoreplasty in differentiating palatal flutter from other forms of snoring. This was done in the hope of determining which patients would benefit from definitive palatal surgery such as uvulopalatopharyngoplasty and laser-assisted uvuloplasty.

Materials:

Sixty consecutive patients referred for habitual snoring were treated with sodium tetradycil sulphate during their first consultation visit. No patients were excluded and none refused the treatment. Forty patients received a single 1 ml dose of 1 per cent sodium tetradycil sulphate, and twenty patients received a single 1 ml dose of 3 per cent sodium tetradycil sulphate under topical anaesthesia. Visual analogue snoring scales were completed by the patient and their partner six weeks, three months, six months and 12 months after the procedure.

Results:

Forty of the 60 patients showed improvement in snoring and therefore were considered for definitive surgery. Four of the 60 patients found the investigation unpleasant and did not want any further treatment. Of the 40 patients who showed improvement, 29 maintained this at one year. The other 11 underwent uvulopalatopharyngoplasty or laser-assisted palatoplasty. All patients had successful snoring scale outcomes following the surgery.

Conclusion:

A significant number of the patients, 62 per cent, were demonstrated to have significant improvement in the short term. Single dose injection snoreplasty seems not only to be an effective investigation but may constitute a safe and simple treatment within the clinic. At the very least, patients in whom the palate appears not to be the problem are prevented from undergoing painful, unpleasant surgery. Our results support the use of injection snoreplasty, both as an investigation and in some patients as a treatment, for habitual snoring.

Keywords

SnoringPalateSoftTherapiesInvestigationalSurgical ProceduresOperativeOutcome Assessment (Health Care)
Type
Main Articles
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 122 , Issue 11 , November 2008 , pp. 1190 - 1193
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 2008

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Fairbanks, DNF, Fujitas, S (eds). Snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea. An overview with historical perspectives. New York: Raven Press, 1987;1–18Google Scholar
2 Ah-See, KW, Stewart, M, Banham, SW, Robinson, K, Carter, R, Wilson, JA. Systematic analysis of snoring in women. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol 1998;107:227–31CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3 Fujita, S, Conway, W, Zorick, F, Roth, T. Surgical correction of anatomic abnormalities in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome: uvulopalatopharyngoplasty. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1981;89:923–34CrossRefGoogle Scholar
4 Kamami, YV. Laser Co for snoring: preliminary results. Acta Otorhinolaryngol Belg 1990;44:451–6 [in English]Google Scholar
5 Mair, EA, Day, RH. The cautery assisted palatal stiffening operation. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2000;122:547–55Google ScholarPubMed
6 Powell, NB, Riley, RW, Troell, RJ, Li, K, Blumen, MB, Guilleminault, C. Radiofrequency volumetric tissue reduction of the palate in subjects with sleep disordered breathing. Chest 1998;113:1163–74CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7 Morar, P, Nandapalan, V, Lesser, TH, Swift, AC. Mucosal-strip/uvulectomy by the CO2 laser as a method of treating simple snoring. Clin Otolaryngol 1995;20:308–11CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
8 Ellis, PD, Williams, JE, Shneerson, JM. Surgical relief of snoring due to palatal flutter; a preliminary report. Ann R Coll Surg Engl 1993;75:286–90Google ScholarPubMed
9 Reda, M, Ullal, U, Wilson, JA. The quality of life impact of snoring and the effect of laser palatoplasty. Clin Otolaryngol 2000;25:570–6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10 Jones, TM, Swift, AC, Calverley, PMA, Ho, MS, Eais, JE. Acoustic analysis of snoring before and after palatal surgery. Eur Respir J 2005;25:1–6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
11 Pringle, MB, Croft, CB. A comparison of sleep nasendoscopy and the Muller manoeuvre. Clin Otolaryngol 1991;16:559–62CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12 El-Badowey, MR, McKee, G, Heggie, N, Marshall, H, Wilson, JA. Predictive value of sleep nasendoscopy in the management of habitual snorers. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol 2003;112:40–4CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13 Ramilingam, KK, Smith, MC. Simple treatment for snoring as a means of prediction of uvulopalatopharyngoplasty success? J Laryngol Otol 1990;104:428–9CrossRefGoogle Scholar
14 Brietzke, SE, Mair, EA. Injection snoreplasty: how to treat snoring without all the pain and expense. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2001;124:503–10CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
15 Pockock, SJ. The simplest statistical test: how to check for a difference between treatments. BMJ 2006;332:1256–8CrossRefGoogle Scholar
16 Weaver, TE, Laizner, AM, Evans, LK, Maislim, G, Chugh, DK, Lyon, K, Smith, PL, Schwartz, AR, Redline, S, Pack, S, Dinges, DF. An instrument to measure functional status of outcomes for disorders of excessive sleepiness. Sleep 1997;20:835–43Google ScholarPubMed
17 Piccirillo, JF, Gates, GA, White, DL, Schectman, KB. Obstructive sleep apnoea treatment outcomes pilot study. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1998;118:833–44CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
18 Scotts, A, Richardson, H, Wilson, JA. A comparison of physician and patient perception of the problems of habitual snoring. Clin Otolaryngol 2003;28:18–21CrossRefGoogle Scholar