Snorology 101: A Snoring Treatment

We love sleep.

We need sleep.

Hell, we love sleep!

Isn’t it nice to just relax and have a restful night’s sleep after a hard day at work? Isn’t it a joy to be one with the bed and sleep the night away? Who wouldn’t want that, right?

Most of the time, we get this restful sleep we love and need, but sometimes, some things are just there to deprive us of a restful sleep. The problem is usually snoring.

Snoring is a natural sleeping disorder. Snoring is when the uvula, tonsil, soft palate and tongue rub together, making a vibration. This vibration causes the unappealing sound that we call snoring.

Snoring may be caused by a lot of things. Some people snore because they are overweight and the bulky necks contribute to their snoring. Some people snore because of their sleeping position. But the most common cause of snoring is poor breathing.

When your nasal cavity is blocked, then your body will have to compromise for this lack of air-flow. Therefore, you will have to breathe through your mouth. This is usually where it begins.

There are many remedies for snoring. There are sprays, mouthpieces, herbal medicines and the like. But most of those snoring treatments are usually just for the light – moderate snorers. Some heavy snorers have to go through drastic measures just to get rid of their problem.

Sometimes, snoring is a sign of “obstructive sleep apnea.” Sleep apnea is dangerous to your health because it is when a snorer halts breathing a few times every hour. This is definitely a health hazard and should be looked into immediately.

Here are some of the snoring treatments for the more drastic snorers:

I. Somnoplasty

Somnoplasty is for those people who snore heavily and loudly but does not have any other breathing disorder.

It is an easy and fast way to treat snoring. It uses low-energy and low-temperatures on some areas of the soft palate and uvula. In just a few weeks after the treatment, you will feel the thickness of it decrease.

II. Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP)

Just like Sonoplasty, this treatment can prevent or cure sleep apnea. But this is a surgery and is for the drastic cases.

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty tightenes the oral muscles we have and expands the air passages.

III. Thermal Ablation Palatoplasty (TAP)

There are three types of TAP: bipolar cautery, laser, and radiofrequency.

Laser Assisted Uvula Palatoplastry (LAUP) may put an end to snoring and to mild cases of obstructive sleep apnea. This is effective because it removes obstructions in the airways.

The laser vaporizes the uvula and a portion of the soft palate, making it thinner, giving more room for air and eliminating snoring.

Radiofrequency Ablation deals with snoring and obstructive sleep apnea by strategically placing needle electrode on certain parts of the oral cavity. This needle electrode will shrink away excess tissues, thinning the parts they are placed.

IV. Genioglossus and hyod advancement.

This is a surgery to cure drastic snoring. Basically, this procedure pulls the tongue muscle forward so that the airway won’t be obstructed.

These treatments are expensive and time consuming. But if you want our health to be perfect, you should go out and visit clinics so that physicians can check out our sleep patterns.

Snoring, even though it’s the topic of a lot of jokes and is funny at times, should not be taken lightly because it may cause you your health.

There are ways to prevent chronic snoring, and we should try and do those. Here are some of them:

-live a healthy lifestyle and tone muscles and lose weight.
-avoid sedatives and alcoholic beverages.
-get a regular sleeping habit.
-sleep on your side.
-elevate your head or the head of the car.

Follow these steps if you want to avoid the hassle of surgery or any other equally invasive snoring treatment.