Introduction
Snoring is a widespread, annoying phenomenon that affects up to thirty percent of adults. There are numerous factors that favour the development of snoring. During snoring, the throat muscles are slack and fluttering, vibrating movements of the soft palate and uvula cause the noise. There are several ways to relieve the discomfort.
What are the therapeutic options?
There are several factors that favor the occurrence of snoring. These include various anatomical changes that often impede nasal breathing and thus promote snoring. Depending on what kind of change is present, surgical interventions are considered, which can correct possible bottlenecks.
There are also possibilities to reduce snoring by adapting the lifestyle. It can help: For some people, a snoring splint (palatal brace) can help to alleviate the symptoms. The dentist is responsible for this and adjusts the splint individually to the teeth.
The purpose of a snoring splint is to keep the airways open. In addition, there are various nose clips and nose plasters that are intended to facilitate nasal breathing during sleep. Another way to prevent mouth breathing during sleep is to use chin straps.
Chin straps fix the jaw to keep the mouth closed. This is supposed to make people breathe through their nose and snore less. For those who suffer from sleep apnea in addition to snoring, nasal breathing devices are a possibility.
These serve to ensure that the affected person has an adequate supply of oxygen during the entire sleep period. Nasal respirators work with the help of positive airways pressure, nasal continuous positive airways pressure, nCPAP. This pressure prevents the slack throat muscles from closing the upper airways during sleep.
In very severe cases of sleep apnea syndrome, BIPAP (bi positive airway pressure) treatment can help. Consequently, there are several possible treatment options for snorers, depending on the cause of snoring.
- Overweight reduction
- Abstention from alcohol in the evening
- Earlier consumption of the evening bread
- Avoid sleeping in the supine position
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