Striking a balance between invasiveness and effectiveness of snoring treatment

Abstract

Introduction: Snoring is a common form of breathing disturbances during sleep. Snoring is the most frequent an isolated symptom (called then primary snoring) but sometimes it is one of OSA or UARS symptoms. Primary snoring is not only a social but also a health problem. That is why we should diagnose and treat all the patients complaining of snoring. For many years, methods have been sought that would, on the one hand, ensure adequate effectiveness and, on the other hand, minimize the invasiveness of therapy.Aim: The aim of this study is to review the methods of snoring treatment paying attention to its invasiveness and effectiveness. Material and methods: The scientific publications on the Pubmed between 2005 and 2022 were reviewed using the key words.Results: A large variety of surgical procedures offered to patients who snore is an evidence to the lack of an optimal method of treatment. Methods of therapy are still being sought, which, on the one hand, would give a chance for a significant reduction of snoring and maintain this result for a longer period of time, and on the other hand, would be characterized by low invasiveness. One of the techniques that is characterized by low invasiveness and, at the same time, high efficiency in a selected group of patients snoring with the soft palate hypertrophy is the Er:YAG laser treatment.