Two images showing a dental procedure with a mouth retractor. The left image highlights two T-shaped structures and a blue line between them. The right image shows the same mouth with blue arrows pointing outward from the T-shaped structures and downward from the center, indicating areas of focus during the procedure.

Barbed pharyngoplasty is an effective surgical option that involves the removal of tonsils(T) and the repositioning of palatopharyngeal muscles towards the pterygomandibular raphe, therefore both increasing the diameter of the pharyngeal opening(blue line) and tensioning the soft palate(arrows).

What are the treatment options for snoring?

“While I tell my patients that the most effective treatment is losing weight (at least 10% of body weight), this is often challenging.”

If there is significant nasal congestion, the relevant pathology (deviated septum, hypertrophy of the turbinates, nasal valve insufficiency, allergic rhinitis, adenoid hypertrophy) should be corrected.

Surgical options such as radiofrequency application to the soft palate, palatoplasties, and pharyngoplasties that also involve removing the tonsils can achieve high success for snoring if appropriate patients are selected.