University of Virginia Health System

U.VA. Offers New Treatment for Snoring

This new procedure is a major advancement in what we're able to offer patients who have problems with snoring, said Dr. Paul A. Levine, professor and chairman of U.Va.'s Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Traditional surgeries to treat snoring are painful and may require multiple treatments. The new procedure is relatively painless and may significantly reduce snoring in most patients with just one or two treatments.

Snoring, which affects more than 40 million Americans, is caused from the vibration that occurs when air passes over the uvula and soft palate, the tissues in the back of the throat that relax during sleep. In the new procedure, surgeons deliver a controlled amount of radiofrequency energy to heat a small area of tissue. This shortens and stiffens the soft palate and uvula and results in less vibration from air flow.

Habitual snorers are people who snore almost every night at a noise level that would be considered disturbing to others in the same room, Levine said. The disruption of normal sleep can lead to excessive sleepiness, fatigue, and loss of memory and concentration – in both the person who snores and his or her bed partner.

Gil Pearman of Waynesboro was one of the first patients at U.Va. to receive the new treatment. For the past 10 years I've been told by my friends and family that I'm a heavy snorer, he said. They could hear me snoring through closed doors. I would wake myself up sometimes. And I often had a sore throat the next morning and a sense of fatigue throughout the day.

Pearman received his first treatment on October 28. It was painless and quick. My throat was uncomfortable for the first day, but I was still able to go to work. Over Christmas, my family noticed a big improvement in my snoring level. Pearman received a second treatment on December 28. Now I sleep all the way through the night. I don't have sore throats any more, and I'm less tired during the day.

Levine said that patients who snore should be fully evaluated before undergoing the new procedure. It's important to make sure there are no underlying problems, such as sleep apnea or a tumor in the throat, causing the snoring.

Somnus Medical Technologies, Inc. of Sunnyvale, Ca., developed the new procedure, known as Somnoplastysm. Somnus received approval from the Food and Drug Administration in July 1997 to market its Somnoplasty System as an aid in the treatment of habitual snoring.

February 1, 1999