About a surgery for Sleep Apnea.?
I have sleep Apnea and my doctor recommended getting a surgery to basically hollow out my throat so i can breathe at night. the surgery is abbreviated UPPP. My friend, whos parents are doctors, does not think i shound get it because of risks and the fact i wld have to re-learn to swallow and that my voice may change? Is any of this reasonable? I dont want to be dependednt on a oxygen machine my whole life.
im not over weight, im 18 and pretty healthy. I am always tired though, hence my desire to get this fixed. the CPAP just seems like something that would wiegh me down at college next year. My doctor told me surgery would be good for someone my age. but im still nervous. I would also be getting a deviated septum fixed while I am at it to help with the breathing…
Tagged with: cpap • desire • doctors • friend whos • oxygen machine • parents • septum • sleep • whole life
Filed under: Sleep Apnea Machine Questions
being a respiratory therapist and a patient with sleep apnea. I have looked at all of the options and research. Surgery is really a last resort. It is only 50 percent at best. Surgery only works if they know exactly where the obstruction is. My uncle had the surgery you are considering sure it help for a while but the scar tissue has made his sleep apnea worse than ever and he was a lot older than you when he had it. A cpap machine weighs only a couple of pounds and sits on a night stand. No big deal.
Another option is a dental device. I have a friend who absolutely could not do cpap. The dental device works for him.
Whatever you do, you need to be complaint with treatment if you want to make it through college. Untreated OSA has the effect of fatigue, headaches and depression. This is certainly not condusive to learning. Although I had a degree, it was not until I was treated that I could go back to school and get a second and third degree.
Visit the sleepnet.com website for a ton of infomation and people who have done all of the treatments options.
Don’t get it! Unless you absolutely have to- and make sure you stay in the hospital from four to eight days…someone i take care of just lost her 15-year-old grandson from this surgery….it was heartbreaking.
I have it too. And after doing research on it.. I decided against the surgery for those reasons and more. The surgery isn’t anywhere near 100% effective. As far as an "oxygen machine" it is called CPAP and it isn’t an oxygen machine, just an air compressor. It is no big deal, I’ve had one for years. However, the more weight I lose, the less and less I seem to need it. I don’t know if you are overweight, but if you are, I would suggest that you try losing some and see if it goes away.