Comments on Surgery

[KTinTexas]

I have been on CPAP for a year now with what I consider limited success. I can only keep it on for about 3 hours, sometimes less. I think my numbers are OK during that 3 hours but I ALWAYS wake up to find the mask on the floor. I find myself wondering about surgery instead. A former co-worker had surgery because he couldn't keep the mask on either. He changed jobs and I don't have his contact info - I wish I could ask him about the success of the surgery. I do remember him saying how painful it was afterwards ( the WORST sore throat ever).

[Biguugly]

Since you didn't specify what surgery, I can only guess that the guy had septoplasty, which is used to repair a deviated septum; and I'll agree with him on the sore throat. Kinda like pouring alcohol on hemorrhoids!

[chunkyfrog]

Thank you for the image . . .
(which will be with me to my grave)

[Julie]

How about a tonsillectomy?

[kteague]

If you are looking for people who have been successful with the surgeries purported to be an option instead of CPAP, you aren't likely to find them on a CPAP forum. You will find here those for which the surgeries did not work and they ended up on CPAP after all. That's not to say that surgery is never an option, but this is a weighted audience. I have known 3 people personally who had variations of having their soft palate/uvula/tongue "repaired". One had trouble with drinking liquids coming out his nose. One said he still snored. Another was still falling asleep at the blink of an eye even in public settings. So I am admittedly biased.

Without going back through your old posts I don't know what all you've tried. Have you already checked your machine data to confirm your treatment is optimized and you are not removing the mask due to undertreated events? Have you already tried taping the mask strap to the skin on your face to where it will cause pain upon removal and wake you up so you can stop the unwanted behavior? Have you already checked your sleep study details to see if perchance your OSA is positional and if exclusively side sleeping could reduce your events to an acceptable level? Have you considered if your particular case is a reasonably good candidate for a dental device bringing your events to an acceptable level?

Some people have septoplasty or tonsillectomies when warranted and report the procedures made their CPAP treatment more tolerable, but I get the idea that's not what you are looking for. I personally would not consider an irreversible surgical procedure of questionable chance of success until I had exhausted non-invasive options. There's been lots of prior discussion of this topic on the forum. Might want to check out some of the threads. I remember discussion of the statistics on the success rates of the different procedures and the degree of success based on the severity of the diagnosis. Good reading.

[Wulfman...]

I have been on CPAP for a year now with what I consider limited success. I can only keep it on for about 3 hours, sometimes less. I think my numbers are OK during that 3 hours but I ALWAYS wake up to find the mask on the floor. I find myself wondering about surgery instead. A former co-worker had surgery because he couldn't keep the mask on either. He changed jobs and I don't have his contact info - I wish I could ask him about the success of the surgery. I do remember him saying how painful it was afterwards ( the WORST sore throat ever).

WHAT "surgery"?
The vast majority of people who have some sort of surgery still have to use CPAP or BiPAP therapy sooner or later and many times at higher pressures. It's NOT a "cure". Sometimes they may help reduce events, but no cure. I wouldn't even THINK about UPPP.

UPPP?

search.php?keywords=UPPP

Septoplasty?

search.php?keywords=septoplasty


Den

.

[greatunclebill]

Thank you for the image . . .
(which will be with me to my grave)

There are some things you can never unsee even if you never actually see it. LOL....

[greatunclebill]

I personally know a couple people that had unsuccessful surgeries and went back to cpap. I do not personally know any person that had a successful surgery. ask your doctor how many successful surgeries he has done that he can support with a follow-up sleep study. Do yourself a favor and don't do any surgery until you can talk person to person in the same room to a person that had successful surgery and a follow-up sleep study. Make sure your sleep doctor is a board certified pulmonologist, not a neuro and not an ent.

[Goofproof]

I personally know a couple people that had unsuccessful surgeries and went back to cpap. I do not personally know any person that had a successful surgery. ask your doctor how many successful surgeries he has done that he can support with a follow-up sleep study. Do yourself a favor and don't do any surgery until you can talk person to person in the same room to a person that had successful surgery and a follow-up sleep study. Make sure your sleep doctor is a board certified pulmonologist, not a neuro and not an ent.

Most surgeries are successful for the doctors, they usually get paid, either way. Jim

[nawchem]

I had a rather intense amount of sinus surgeries, septoplasty, turbinatees - ENT also specialized in sleep disorders. I was diagnosed after the surgeries.

Does your machine have an alarm if you have the machine on and the mask off?

[KTinTexas]

I appreciate all these comments. The surgery my co-worker had was UPP. I have had 2 ENTs tell me I needed correction of my deviated septum with turbinate reduction but those recommendations were not for sleep apnea (just for breathing better). I have tried taping the mask on but I will try it again with more tape. My doctor is not a sleep specialist, just a family doctor. The insurance I am on now is even worse than the insurance I was on last year when I was diagnosed. In 7 1/2 more months I will be on Medicare. Hopefully I will be able to go to a sleep specialist.

[Optimist50]

My mother had the surgery years ago. Said it was extremely painful and didn't work in relieving her horrid snoring. She said she wished she had never done it.

[Mikebear]

20 years ago I had Turbinate reduction, Septoplasty, AND UPPP surgery. They all were successful, yet I still have to use a cpap machine to this day. All the surgeries were just to get to the point I could even use cpap therapy successfully.

Now, my pressures are lower because of them, AND I have far more Hypopneas then complete Obstructive apnea's, but I never went into them expecting they would "cure" me, OR that I wouldn't need a cpap machine after. I would have considered that a bonus from God.

Now, surgery techniques probably have advanced a bit since that long ago, BUT, if I was you, I would NOT have the surgeries because you expect to be CURED. If you have them to help you better tolerate cpap therapy, THAT would be a worthy goal and I would expect success for that reason.

[chunkyfrog]

The bullfrog was sent to an ENT after a slightly enlarged thyroid node was discovered.
After a painful, but not definitive, biopsy, this guy was super eager to do surgery.
My hubby elected to wait and see--an endocrinologist.
3 years later, things look good.
Are all ENT's knife-happy? Just wondering.

[Goofproof]

The bullfrog was sent to an ENT after a slightly enlarged thyroid node was discovered.
After a painful, but not definitive, biopsy, this guy was super eager to do surgery.
My hubby elected to wait and see--an endocrinologist.
3 years later, things look good.
Are all ENT's knife-happy? Just wondering.

???, but they have nice cars and New Big Houses! Jim

You will find my ENT's living under a overpass, I'm not going near the knife, without a fight.