One-year results: palatal implants for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.

Objective: To evaluate long-term effectiveness of palatal implants for treatment of mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).

Study Design: A prospective study of 26 referred patients with a pretreatment apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) of 10 to 30 and a body mass index of < or =30, representing an extended follow-up of a subset of 41 patients enrolled in previous short-term trials.

Results: Twenty-one of 26 patients (80.

Soft palate implants as a minimally invasive treatment for mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea.

Conclusion: The palatal implant method originally designed to reduce snoring can significantly reduce the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) in some patients with mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in a single office-based procedure.

Objective: An initial study designed to evaluate the short-term efficacy and safety of palatal implants as primary treatment for patients with mild to moderate OSA.

Materials And Methods: This was a prospective, non-randomized study of 16 previously untreated and undiagnosed patients with sleep apnea.

Nightmares and oxygen desaturations: is sleep apnea related to heightened nightmare frequency?

In the 19th century, several authors held the view that nightmares are caused by oxygen shortage. The present study was designed to study nightmare frequency in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and its relationship to respiratory parameters. A brief questionnaire was administered to 323 patients with sleep apnea syndrome before their first laboratory night.

Long-term results of palatal implants for primary snoring.

Objective: To determine the safety and efficacy of the Pillar Palatal Implant System over a 1-year follow-up period.

Study Design And Setting: In this prospective study, 40 healthy adult patients with primary snoring due to palatal flutter were treated after clinical, polysomnographic, and endoscopic examination. Under local anesthesia 3 implants were placed into the soft palate.

Palatal implants for primary snoring: short-term results of a new minimally invasive surgical technique.

Objective: To determine the safety and efficacy of a new soft palate implant procedure for the reduction of snoring.

Study Design And Setting: Fifteen healthy patients with primary snoring due to palatal flutter were enrolled into this prospective study after clinical and endoscopic examination and polysomnography. The average age of the patients was 41.

Combined radiofrequency surgery of the tongue base and soft palate in obstructive sleep apnoea.

Objective: To investigate the safety and efficacy of combined temperature-controlled radiofrequency volumetric tissue reduction of the tongue base and soft palate in obstructive sleep apnoea.

Material And Methods: A total of 20 patients with obstructive sleep apnoea and combined palatal and retrolingual obstruction were included in a non-randomized clinical trial and 51 combined treatments were performed under local anaesthesia. Postoperative pain was assessed using visual analogue scales.

Radiofrequency surgery of the soft palate in the treatment of snoring: a review of the literature.

Study Objectives: Radiofrequency surgery of the soft palate presents a promising alternative for the treatment of snoring. The aim of this study was to give an overview of the current literature and to quantify the results in terms of a meta-analysis of treatment efficacy.

Methods: Current databases were searched for publications concerning the treatment of snoring with radiofrequency surgery up to January 2003.

Novel approaches to primary snoring.

Snoring is a widespread disorder, mostly affecting middle-aged men. Snoring is not harmful in itself, but may lead to social impairment. Therefore, snorers often seek for medical advice and effective treatment.