Snoring & Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA)

Snoring

Snoring is a very common sleep related breathing disorder. Snoring is a noise produced by the excessive vibration of the soft palate and occurs when there is some degree of obstruction to the free flow of air through the pharyngeal airway at the back of the oral cavity. It can also occur as a result of nasal obstruction. Approximately 25% of the adult population snore regularly.

Snoring is usually multi factorial and factors associated with snoring may include:

• Being overweight
• Getting older
• Males more commonly snore than females
• Drinking and Smoking
• Family history
• Having a blocked nose
• Having a large tongue, large tonsils and/or Adenoids
• Craniofacial abnormalities such as jaw retrognathia or high arched palate
• Sleeping position

Snoring is more common when lying on your back and is often partially relieved by lying on the side.

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA)

OSA is a form of sleep disorder breathing where you actually stop breathing frequently throughout the night. It varies from mild to severe depending on how frequently you stop breathing and how prolonged your periods of apnoea are. This results in a very restless sleep pattern, which inevitably leads to very poor quality sleep. As a result patients with OSA often wake up feeling unrefreshed and report feeling tired throughout the day.

Patients with snoring and OSA require comprehensive evaluation and assessment by an ENT, Head and Neck Surgeon to determine what factors are contributing to their sleep disorder breathing. Patients with OSA also require a sleep study and review by a respiratory/sleep physician.