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Lookup NU author(s): Dr Michael DrinnanORCiD, Helen Richardson, Dr Clive Griffiths, Emeritus Professor John Gibson
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Laser palatoplasty (LPP) is widely used for the treatment of non-apnoeic snoring, despite the lack of objective data supporting its use. We report measurements of snoring in a prospective study of LPP, and we compare the results with a previous study of uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP). Twenty patients with an apnoea/hypopnoea index <20 h(-1) underwent LPP for habitual snoring. Overnight sound recordings were compared before and 6 months after operation using three objective indices; L-1 (the level exceeded by the loudest 1% of sound), L-5 (the level exceeded by the loudest 5% of sound) and P-50 (% total sleep time above 50 dBA). The subjective impression of snoring severity (Wilcoxon test, P < 0.001), and objective indices L-1 and P-50 (t-test, P < 0.001) showed significant reductions after LPP. The mean change in L-1 was 4.2 dBA, comparable to that we previously reported for UPPP, while P-50 was reduced to less than one-third its preoperative value. No other sleep variables changed significantly following LPP. We conclude that LPP results in reduced snoring volume comparable to that following UPPP.
Author(s): Drinnan MJ; Gibson GJ; Griffiths CJ; Richardson HC; Close PR; Smithson AJ; White JES; Marshall HF
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Clinical Otolaryngology
Year: 1999
Volume: 24
Issue: 4
Pages: 335-338
ISSN (print): 1749-4478
ISSN (electronic): 1749-4486
Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2273.1999.00268.x
DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2273.1999.00268.x
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