Palate Surgery

If it is determined that a part, or all, of the upper airway obstruction occurring during your sleep apned events are caused by an airway obstruction at the level of the soft palate, palatoplasty can surgically correct the obstruction.  Palatoplasty involves much more than simply removing a portion of the soft palate or resecting the uvula; rather, a well-performed palatoplasty redirects the forces acting on the palate to promote patency in the area during sleep while ensuring normal daytime palatal function.  Thus, it is extremely rare to develop worsening of your sleep apnea or complications such as nasal regurgitation, after a palatoplasty.  For those patients who still have tonsils, they are also removed during palatoplasty.  These procedures are performed under general anesthesia and take approximately 90 minutes to complete.