Nose, snoring and obstructive sleep apnea relations

The nose itself represents %75 of the entire airway track (from the nose to the alveoli in the lung). A nasal obstruction here is found to be the major contributing factor to snoring and to the obstructive sleep apnea. When there is an airway blockage within the nasal passage, the lungs have to work harder to suck in air to the lung. This creates with time greater negative airway pressure resulting in the collapse of hypopharyngeal, retroglossal and retropalatal place ending up with apnea. So, obstructive sleep apnea results as an advanced form of snoring where a collapse in the upper airway muscle tonus system takes place. Sleep surgery is a multilevel process. Treating nasal obstruction first concludes improvement in snoring but cures only 20 percent of obstructive sleep apnea. These surgical procedures are basically septum deviation surgery, inferior turbinate surgery. These surgeries also facilitate other treatments for obstructive sleep apnea like using positive airway mechanical devices.

This content reflects only information, physician consultation is recommended for the diagnosis and treatment.