Snoring Surgery: A Retrospective Review

Objective: To undertake a retrospective, questionnaire review of surgery for heavy snoring, to ascertain patients' perception of the procedure and its effect on their snoring. Patients and Methods: A specifically designed postal questionnaire was sent to 261 patients who underwent snoring surgery at University Hospital Aintree, Liverpool, UK, between April 1993 and March 2000. One hundred ninety‐three patients responded (73.9%), including 151 men and 42 women. Mean age was 49.0 years (range, 24–74 yrs). Results: Twenty‐two patients had a uvulopalatopharyngoplasty, 53 a traditional laser palatoplasty and uvulectomy, and 118 an uvulopalatal elevation palatoplasty. There was a 26% patient‐reported postoperative infection rate. Morbidity regarding postoperative swallowing, pharyngeal sensation or voice change appeared minimal. Seventy‐six percent scored postoperative pain as “moderate” or “severe,” irrespective of the operation performed (P = 0.989). Thirty‐seven percent of patients perceived an improvement in postoperative sleep quality. Twenty‐four percent of patients reported no improvement in snoring after surgery. Forty‐three percent reported an initial improvement that was not sustained for 2 years, whereas 34% of patients benefited from an improvement sustained for longer than 2 years, irrespective of the operation performed (P = 0.143). Only 47%, with hindsight, would have undergone surgery. Conclusion: These data highlight that snoring surgery has a high postoperative morbidity rate and a high failure rate. Research endeavors should be directed to the development of a strategy which enables reliable preoperative identification of patients' who enjoy sustained benefit postoperatively.