Shooting a laser into your throat could stop snoring.
The treatment is thought to work by warming the soft tissue in the throat, triggering changes that make it firmer and prevent it from vibrating during sleep.
In a recent trial of more than 70 snorers, about 70 percent of participants stopped snoring after three sessions, according to research published in the International Archives of Otorhinolaryngology.
A new trial of the treatment is now underway in Portugal, at the University Institute of Health Sciences, where it will be compared with a placebo.
Snoring usually occurs when the soft tissue of the mouth, throat, or airway vibrates as air passes through when people breathe during sleep.
In some cases, snoring is linked to obstructive sleep apnea, when the airway temporarily collapses during sleep. Risk factors include being overweight, sleeping on your back, drinking alcohol and smoking.
Beyond lifestyle changes, treatment depends on the cause. For example, a special mouth guard can push the tongue forward to prevent it from blocking the airway.
Snoring usually occurs when the soft tissue of the mouth, throat or airway vibrates as air passes through when people breathe during sleep (stock)
The treatment is thought to work by warming the soft tissue in the throat, triggering changes that make it firmer and prevent it from vibrating during sleep (stock)
The new Yag laser treatment was performed on 76 patients between the ages of 50 and 70 who snored but did not have sleep apnea.
The laser uses a low temperature, as while higher temperatures have been used in the past to treat snoring in order to remove excess soft tissue, there have been reports of bleeding, pain and scarring.
After applying a numbing gel, the handheld device is placed inside the mouth with the tip about 3 cm from the target tissue at the back of the throat. Patients have three 15-minute sessions, two weeks apart.
The results show that 52 of the study participants (68.4 percent) no longer snored, while 24 (31.6 percent) experienced a slight improvement. Before the study, ten of them had been classified as “epic” snorers, meaning that nighttime noise had caused their partner to leave the bedroom. Six of them improved so much that they were able to welcome their partner back.
Two-thirds of participants (65.2 percent) were no longer snoring even two years after treatment.
In some cases, snoring is related to obstructive sleep apnea, when the airways temporarily collapse during sleep (stock)
The combination of light and heat is thought to stimulate an increase in fibroblasts, cells that produce collagen, a protein that gives structure to tissues: this stiffens soft tissue and causes it to contract, making it less likely to collapse during sleep.
“Our study shows that the use of the Yag laser for soft palate tightening has yielded good results,” said the ENT specialists from Cairo University, who led the research. No postoperative complications were reported.
Commenting on the research, Jaydip Ray, consultant ENT surgeon and professor of otology and neurotology at the University of Sheffield, said: “This is an exciting development in non-invasive options for the treatment of snoring.
‘The current study is promising, but in a small number of users.
“It is imperative to see more long-term results in a larger number of patients.”
Stimulating a nerve under the tongue may combat snoring and sleep apnea, the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine reports.
Fifteen snorers who had an electrical device implanted in their chest (delivering mild stimulation to the nerve that controls the tongue and other airway muscles) reduced the number of times they stopped breathing from an average of 35 per hour to 11.2.
Snoring rates were halved, as were levels of partner annoyance due to snoring, said researchers at the University of Regensburg in Germany.