FAQs About Snoring Surgery

If you’re struggling with disturbed nights and sleep apnea, you may have been recommended to think about snoring surgery with an ENT doctor. This procedure is straightforward and can really improve your health and quality of life. However, it’s natural to have a few questions ahead of your surgery. Here are the most frequently asked questions about snoring surgery.

How do I schedule snoring surgery?

Start with a consultation and pre-assessment process with your ENT doctor. They will examine you thoroughly, try to establish the cause of your snoring and talk you through the treatment available. There you will be able to get an overview of the procedure and decide if it’s right for you. Your suitability for treatment will be looked at and the radiofrequency treatment tailored to suit your particular needs.

How long does snoring surgery take?

Not as long as you might think! In fact, the surgery can generally be completed in just half an hour. It begins with your ENT doctor using an endoscope, or a small camera on a flexible tube, to examine your throat and soft palate thoroughly. Then you will take some anesthesia before the radiofrequency treatment is administered. The entire process is quite straightforward and very quick.

How does snoring surgery work?

The process uses radiofrequency much like you might imagine a laser being used – to reshape, modify and tighten the tissue of the soft palate and uvula. This reshaping process makes it much easier to breathe during the night, causing a drastic improvement in sleep quality, reducing the noise of snoring and helping to prevent sleep apnea.

What is the process of snoring surgery?

After your initial consultation and assessment with the ENT doctor, the surgery will start with a numbing oral spray, after which local anesthetic will be injected into the roof of your mouth. An applicator with a small electrode pad is then placed on the roof of your mouth. This generates a low radiofrequency current at certain points, for a few seconds at a time. The soft tissue is heated and will shrink and harden over time.

How long is the recovery period?

As only local anesthetic is used, there is not a long recovery period after snoring surgery. Most patients are fine to drive themselves home straight after the procedure. You should not take any aspirin for about ten days following the surgery, as this can slow down the healing process, but you are usual okay to use paracetamol. Ask your ENT doctor about suitable painkillers and what to do about any other medication you’re taking.

How long until I see an improvement?

Although the surgery itself is very quick, seeing the full effect of the treatment takes some time. Initially, the radiofrequency treatment causes the tissues in the mouth and throat to become inflamed and swollen, so the snoring can actually get worse in the short term. However, once this has subsided you should see a steady improvement over the course of about a month post-surgery.