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Laser Surgery and Sleep Apnea

By Henry J. Fishman, M.D.
ConsumerAffairs.com

July 30, 2005

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Laser surgery may not work as well as you think to cure sleep apnea.

Folks with sleep apnea have trouble sleeping at night. They have a blockage of the airway at night that can lead to restlessness or no sleep and high blood pressure during the day.

To help, they often turn to L-A-U-P, a laser-assisted surgery. In this surgery, a laser removes tissue from the back of the throat to clear the airway.

But the surgery can also cause pain and scarring.

Researchers who kept track of 29 patients who had the surgery found mixed results a year later. A third of the patients got better, a third stayed the same and a third got worse. They developed scarring in the back of their throat and had worse sleep apnea and snoring.

If you suspect sleep apnea, if you don't sleep well at night or are tired during the day or have headaches, talk to your doctor about going to a sleep lab. If you have the problem ask about other procedures than laser surgery.

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