When is Surgery Used for Treating Sleep Apnea?

01/14/2015 14:21

When is Surgery Used for Treating Sleep Apnea?Sleep apnea is a serious problem that needs to be dealt with promptly before more serious complications develop. Untreated sleep apnea can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke. Fortunately, our expert offers numerous treatments that can curb your symptoms and allow you to get a better night’s sleep. The best treatment for you will depend on the severity of your condition, so our expert will need to give you a test first to determine the best treatment for you.

Patients with a mild case of sleep apnea should be able to be treated with a mouthpiece that pushes soft tissues out of the airways. More moderate cases of sleep apnea should be able to be treated with a CPAP machine. This device forces air through your airways so that you can sleep more soundly at night. Most of the time, one of these treatments is enough to curb the symptoms, but a few patients will require sleep apnea surgery.

Surgery is typically reserved as a last resort when no other treatment has provided results. Some patients may need to have their tonsils or other soft tissues removed. Others may need to have a deviated septum corrected or nasal surgery to open up the nasal passages.