The Effect of Laser Assisted Uvulopalatoplasty in Sleep Apnea Syndrome

Abstract

Loud habitual snoring, the most consistent symptom in sleep apnea syndrome, is a socially disruptive noise and it result in potentially serious medical condition associated with systemic and pulmonary hypertension, cardiac dysrythmias, and increased morbidity and mortality. Laser assisted uvulopalatoplasty(LAUP) is a new and effective surgical method for the treatment of habitual loud snoring. LAUP may also be efficacious in the management of obstuctive sleep apnea syndrome. So, LAUP acutally may be preferable to uvulopalatopharyngoplasty(UPPP), because LAUP has some advantages of an outpatient based operation with local anesthesia and little complications. LAUP was performed in 27 consecutive prospectively evaluated patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome(OSAS) based on preoperative polysomnography. The effectiveness of the operation can be evaluated by improvement of symptoms and changes of variable parameters of polysomnography. The improvement of snoring was obtained in 85.2%. In relation to the symptoms of daytime somnolence and nocturnal restlessness, 72.2% and 78.6% showed improvement. 48.1% showed improvement in the apnea index below 50% of the preoperative level. 44.4% showed improvement in respiratory disturbance index. Although there was a significant difference between the objective and subjective results of the operation, the results of this study suggest that LAUP may be efficacious in the management of snoring and sleep apnea.