Telemedicine for preoperative visits?

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Snoring, Surgery.

As a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, I receive electronic access to the Journal of the American College of Surgeons. I browse the Table of Contents but generally find that most of the articles are related to general surgery or subspecialties within that field (which used to be true for head and neck… Read more »

ISSS and AAO-HNSF 2023 Sleep Surgery Research Highlights

Posted by & filed under Palate Surgery, Sleep Apnea, Surgery, Tongue Surgery.

Nashville, TN was the site of both the 2023 International Surgical Sleep Society (ISSS) Educational Symposium and American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Foundation Annual Meeting. It is always wonderful to see colleagues and long-time friends. However, I wanted to take the chance to share some of what I found to be… Read more »

Does surgery work BETTER than CPAP for obstructive sleep apnea?

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Surgery.

In the United States and many other countries, obstructive sleep apnea surgery is generally considered a second-line therapy for patients who do not tolerate or benefit from positive airway pressure therapy (for example, continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP). This is based on two arguments: Surgery clearly has greater risks than CPAP Surgery does not… Read more »

A call for improving the quality of the otolaryngology – head and neck surgery literature

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Surgery.

I have written previously on this blog about our research highlighting the extremely low quality of published “systematic reviews” and “meta-analyses” in the otolaryngology and sleep surgery literature. We have shown that many studies do not adhere to established, accepted research methods for these studies, creating a dangerous situation where publications that pretend to be… Read more »

New research evaluates trouble swallowing after sleep apnea surgery

Posted by & filed under Palate Surgery, Sleep Apnea, Surgery, Tongue Surgery.

Surgery for obstructive sleep apnea often involves surgery of the throat that removes, repositions, and/or tightens tissue. Although the goal is to improve or eliminate the sleep apnea, the risks include the potential to disrupt normal function, especially speech and swallowing. Fortunately, speech changes have always been rare, but changes in swallowing have always been… Read more »

Insomnia and Anxiety Limit Use of Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Surgery.

Upper Airway Stimulation (Inspire Medical Systems, Golden Valley, MN, USA) is an excellent treatment option for many patients with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea who are unable to tolerate positive airway pressure therapy (for example, CPAP or BPAP) well. There are a number of specific criteria to determine whether a patient is eligible for… Read more »

Will an oral appliance successfully treat my sleep apnea?

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Surgery.

When patients with obstructive sleep apnea cannot tolerate positive airway pressure therapy (e.g., CPAP), they should consider other treatment options, including surgery and oral appliances. My career has focused on the surgical evaluation and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and snoring. When I started in this field, the main surgical option was traditional uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, and… Read more »

Race/ethnicity and sex representation in sleep surgery research studies

Posted by & filed under Sleep Apnea, Snoring, Surgery.

It is known that biomedical research studies include a disproportionate share of non-Hispanic White, middle-aged men. I am no expert, but it is obvious to me that research is most valuable when it reflects the diversity of our patient population and, indeed, our country. On this day that honors Jackie Robinson and his legacy in… Read more »