Hypoglossal nerve stimulation with the Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation system has been a major advance in the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. Most studies examining outcomes – including important research on drug-induced sleep endoscopy and Inspire therapy outcomes where we have played a key role – has focused on how well the system works when… Read more »
Sleep Apnea
Video Post: Surgical evaluation and treatment of OSA and improving outcomes of OSA surgery
We have now released two new videos posted on YouTube and the following UCLA websites: UCLA Sleep Surgery UCLA Head and Neck Surgery Webinars UCLAMDChat Webinars The first video discusses surgical evaluation and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea: The second video shares work in sleep surgery – including research that we have performed… Read more »
What Is Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome (UARS)?
Over the past couple of years, I have seen more patients coming to me, indicating that they have been “diagnosed” with upper airway resistance syndrome (UARS) by so-called sleep experts. I have to stop myself from shaking my head, not knowing whether I should laugh or cry. The problem has become particularly noticeable over the… Read more »
30th Annual Advances in Diagnosis and Treatment of Sleep Apnea and Snoring Highlights
I am writing from our 30th annual Advances in Diagnosis and Treatment of Sleep Apnea and Snoring course in Orlando, Florida. I have been fortunate to take part in this course for the past 20 years but take no credit for the course format that combines medical, surgical, and dental topics. This multidisciplinary approach is…
Insomnia May Prevent Effective Treatment of Sleep Apnea with Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation
The last thing anyone wants is to undergo surgery without achieving results. This idea has been the focus of my career in sleep surgery. It has been wonderful to contribute to advancing our understanding about the physical causes of obstructive sleep apnea and ways we can optimize our preoperative evaluation to select procedures. This work…
Telemedicine for preoperative visits?
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…
2024 Advances in Sleep Apnea and Snoring Course Highlights
We have just completed the 29th Advances in Diagnosis and Treatment of Sleep Apnea and Snoring course in San Francisco. It is so enjoyable to be one of the course directors, where we can think about the newest developments in the field and other topics to incorporate as we develop the program. As I do…
Palate shape is associated with Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation outcomes
The Upper Airway Stimulation system from Inspire Medical Systems has been an important and exciting addition to the array of treatment options for obstructive sleep apnea. I was the first surgeon in the Western US to offer it to patients after FDA approval in 2014, and I have seen the tremendous difference it has made…
ISSS and AAO-HNSF 2023 Sleep Surgery Research Highlights
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?
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 »
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