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snoring treatments

How much does the snoring operation cost?

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It has been reported that there are over 15 million snorers in the UK making it a very common complaint although it should not be considered as normal. Sometimes those who regular snore can experience pauses in breathing whilst they sleep which is known as obstructive sleep apnoea. Snoring can also come with a number of other health implicants such as putting you at a higher risk of heart disease and having a stroke. So, it is no wonder that the snoring treatment market is saturated with a large number of miracle cures to help.

How to stop snoring?

There are a number of things you can do yourself at home to help reduce snoring which includes:

  • Maintaining a healthy weight
  • Sleeping on your side
  • Avoiding caffeine and dairy before bed
  • Reduce alcohol and smoking consumption
  • Set yourself consistent sleep routine

View our 7 ways to stop snoring blog to find out more information on our top tips to stop snoring.

Treating snoring can be challenging and when trying to reduce the risk of sleep apnoea too, the best option is often to seek professional help to ensure that you are safe and going to get the best results.

At The Private Clinic we offer a revolutionary snoring surgery procedure known as LAUP (Laser Assisted Uvula Palatoplasty) which offers great success for many of our patients.

What is the snoring surgery procedure?

Laser assisted uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP) is a snoring treatment procedure that is performed under local anaesthetic in-clinic. The procedure involves using a laser to remove the edges of the soft palate and uvula to reduce the size and remove excess tissue from the throat. This helps to increase the size of the airways which will aid breathing whilst you are sleeping.

LAUP surgery is a very precise and tissue damage is minimal which makes is a much safer and more comfortable procedure compared to uvulopalatoplasty (UPPP) surgery.

How successful is snoring surgery?

Our LAUP snoring surgery is performed by Consultant ENT Surgeon, Professor Yves Kamami, who is the inventor of the LAUP (Laser Assisted Uvula Palatoplasty) procedure. Over 40,000 LAUP procedures have been performed in the UK and is often featured in media such as The Times.

Many patients find that their snoring is reduced immediately following the procedure, but we recommend that you allow a healing period which can take up to 6 weeks. Unlike UPPP procedures, LAUP can be performed more than once to help patients get the best results.

How much is snoring surgery?

A consultation with our Ears Nose and Throat (ENT) surgeon is £100.

Prices for our snoring treatments start from £1,980, depending on the type of treatment.

Is snoring surgery covered by insurance?

Generally, snoring surgery is not considered a medical problem and surgery to treat it is often classed as cosmetic, so it is not often covered by insurance.

At The Private Clinic we offer self-pay snoring surgery treatments to help improve your quality of sleep, allow you to breath easier and stop snoring. We also offer a selection of finance packages to suit all budgets.

Snoring surgery at The Private Clinic

The Private Clinic prides itself on ensuring you have the best quality and most comprehensive care:

  • Consultation with a Consultant ENT Surgeon.
  • Minimally invasive snoring procedure.
  • No general anaesthetic needed, and no hospital stay.
  • Treatment takes just 15 minutes under local anaesthetic
  • Minimum downtime, normal activity can be resumed quickly
  • 24-hour patient helpline to ensure you are always in the best of hands.
  • As many post-operative care and appointments with your surgeon, doctor and nursing team as required.
  • One-year cover for all surgical, hospital and nursing care, in case of any medical issue giving you peace of mind*.
  • Comprehensive patient information, every step of the way
  • Outstanding clinic facilities.
  • Competitively priced for our expertise and experience.
  • With over 35 years’ experience of Cosmetic medical Excellence, you are in safe hands.
  • Our excellent reputation for patient safety and satisfaction, honest advice and outstanding care means your journey with The Private Clinic will be an exciting experience.

Consultations and treatment for snoring take place at our London Harley Street clinic.

To find out more or to book a consultation please call 0333 920 2471 or use our snoring treatment online contact form.

Snoring, an issue for many both men and women.

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Males are not the only ones struggling with snoring conditions, a recent study by the Royal National Throat, Nose and Ear Hospital revealed that almost a 30% of the population of young women within the ages of 25-34 suffer from it too.

There has been recently a rise in women suffering from snoring issue, in fact a study cites that young women have been found to be more irritating snorers compared to their male counterparts.

This is why women are more than ever are becoming more aware of the snoring treatments available and are seeking long-term results.

Snoring is considered a form of sleep apnoea, which causes people to stop breathing for a few seconds or even several minutes within the hour. Snoring not only can disrupt your night sleep, it can also lead to severe health conditions usually related to signs of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) such as memory loss and can even affect relationships.

So what are the reasons why people snore?

Even though everyone’s reasons are different, the most common ones are:

– Sleeping on your back could be one of the main reasons causing snoring issues, this sleeping posture induces the tongue to roll over blocking the airway.

– Having a blocked nose or suffering from a deviated septum can also contribute to snoring as the air doesn’t flow correctly through the airway.

– Being overweight. As obesity rates are continuously raising there has been a link among overweight patients and snoring issues.

However, we must be careful as generalisations cannot be made as there are many different potential causes and effects to this issue.

How to tackle the condition?

There are many snoring treatments available out there, including over-the-counter-snoring cures many with disappointing results.

The truth is that there is no specific “cure” for snoring.  Snoring is essentially generated by the lack of air which travels through the air paths so there are different ways to treat it.

The areas that create the noise are the tongue, nose and throat.

There are three types of snoring treatments available that tackle the different areas:

– The LAUP stands for Laser Assisted Uvulopalatoplasty, this procedure targets the noise generated from the nose and throat. The procedure reduces the tissue in the throat as well as the size of the uvula, meaning the chance of blocking the airway whilst sleeping is minimised. The procedure involves the reducing or treating the uvula on the back of the throat which enables the air to go pass that airway freely. This technique is ideal for patients who suffer from enlarged uvulas

– Bipolar Radiofrequency Thermotherapy (RFITT) – This fast and efficient treatment utilises radio frequency in order to tighten the muscle present on the soft palate reducing its vibration while sleeping. The procedure entails targeting the back of the throat with a slim pen which emits a high frequency, all under local anaesthetic. The best results are usually more prominent around 6 months post treatment. Eve

– Laser Assisted partial turbinectomy the procedure involves the use of a CO2 laser to create an improved air path on the nose. This technique is used in patients who suffer from enlarged nasal turbinate’s.

The combination of the LAUP and Laser Assisted partial turbinectomy treatments can tackle the louder and more disruptive snoring noises.

The Private Clinic Snoring Treatments.

At The Private Clinic for over 30 years we have been assisting many people who deal with snoring and sleeping issues.

The Private Clinic offers the latest treatments to treat snoring issues, including non-invasive laser and radio frequency treatments and counts with specialised surgeons such as Professor Yves Kamami, the inventor of the LAUP (Laser Assisted Uvula Palatoplasty) procedure. The treatment has achieved great results with over 4000 cases.

‘I am very pleased with the results. My snoring has been reduced by 90% and my partner is very pleased…! *

For more information about our snoring treatments, please see our website. To book a snoring treatment consultation with our expert please request a consultation on our website or you can call us on 0333 920 2471.

How can I stop snoring?

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We explore your options for preventing snoring and explain what treatments can help rid of the frustrating condition for good. 

Snoring affects a lot of us – perhaps a lot more than we’d like to admit. In a recent survey 64% of respondents admitted they were prone to making unenviable nasal sounds in their sleep, while a much larger 89% said their partner regularly snored – leaving numbers not quite adding up.

While spotting the infliction is relatively easy (at least if you’ve a partner or friend who complains), treating it can be a different story. Research has shown that over 70% of over-the-counter snoring treatments do not give sufferers the results they hoped for, and this comes straight down to discovering the actual cause of the problem. Snoring isn’t a one-size-fits-all condition and there’s a multitude of issues that can make it occur; for some it’s sleeping on the back (which makes the tongue roll back to the throat), while others find their problem occurs due to a blocked nose. For a few snoring issues can come down to something as simple as carrying too much weight with too little muscle tone around the throat, or it can sometimes be a direct result of a deviated septum in the nose.

One of our most popular treatments for snoring is minimally-invasive, 15 minute Laser Assisted Uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP). Performed under local anaesthetic, the treatment uses a laser to remove and reform excess soft tissue (uvula) on the back of the throat. This excess soft tissue  obstructs the airways and causes the sounds as it vibrates. LAUP gets rid of this obstruction, thus freeing the airways and easing the air flow in the area. Likewise, minimally-invasive treatments like the use of laser to unlock the nose, and Bipolar Radiofrequency Thermotherapy (which uses radio frequency to tighten the muscle within the soft palate) also tackle this problem to stop the nasal night sounds.

Snoring LAUP treatment

However, the treatment isn’t always suitable for everyone. The three treatments will not be able to help those suffering with a deviated septum, where the piece of nose that separates the left and night nostril is displaced. Under this circumstance, you’ll need to be referred to one of our leading plastic surgeons for consultation on a minor rhinoplasty procedure (referred to as Septo-Rhinoplasty).

It might be that you don’t need a procedure. For some people, snoring can be alleviated massively through simply losing a little bit of weight or, for those who drink too much alcohol, cutting back can make a real difference. During our consultations we run through factors like this with you, and analyse all the answers to make sure you’re not spending money on a treatment you don’t need.

Which method is best for you will depend entirely on your individual case; it might be that 15 minute laser treatment is all you need to prevent the frustrating problem, or you may find that working a plastic surgeon and undergoing a rhinoplasty is the only real way forward. Regardless, make sure you work with only the best – snoring is a small problem, but it can have a huge effect on the sleep quality of both you and your partner. Treatment is only as straightforward as an expert makes it, and getting rid of it comes down to the knowledge of the medical professionals you work with and the methods they use.

The Private Clinic

Our mission for the last thirty years has been to provide only the most effective treatments. This means working with industry leaders. Our LAUP treatment is performed by its inventor, Mr. Yves Kamami, who has over 30 years’ experience in the field and is one of the leading figures in the treatment of snoring, blocked noses and sleep apnea. We know small problems can have a huge effect on how you feel, which is why we work hard to make sure we find the best solution for you to stop it for good. LAUP is available at our Birmingham and London clinics. Rhinoplasty consultations are available across the country and procedures are performed in our Manchester and London clinics.

Have any questions? Drop us a message on Facebook or Twitter, or get in contact with us here. 

Are Women Snoring More? The Causes and Solutions to Snoring Explored

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It is thought that snoring affects around 3.5 million people in the UK. With obesity rates stubbornly high and rising, as well as the influence alcohol intake and smoking has over snoring, we are seeing more and more women coming to our clinics to tackle their snoring once and for all. How much this can be attributed to the causal factors or just rising awareness is a hot topic for discussion in the industry. We share our experience of treating patients to discuss if more women are snoring or not.

snoring

Are more women snoring?

It’s not something a survey can answer. As obesity rates continue to rise and extra weight has an influence over snoring for lots of people, it is not unexpected that people are linking it with recent reports that more women are coming to clinics to stop their snoring. However, we must always be careful in making associations between potential causes and effects. More women are coming to The Private Clinic (fifteen times as many appointments for women in their twenties and thirties were made in 2012, as in 2010) but the reasons behind it are not fully explainable. Our Dr. Myles Black partly attributes this rise in women becoming more aware of treatments and frustration at over the counter methods that don’t offer comfortable, long-term results.

As a recent survey from the Travelodge revealed, snoring is the second biggest cause of arguments for couples, after fidgeting. Such a result is just one indication of what we experience with our patients. Many come to the consultation with their partner, as it very much a procedure that benefits sleeping partners. There are a number of over the counter options available but many patients report that these haven’t offered the long-term and hassle-free solution they need. A trip to your GP is the best first move to make, as they deal with your health in general over the long term. From there, consider looking into calling us or booking a consultation to get to grips with the details of our snoring treatments, like time taken from consultation to procedure, for example.

What causes snoring?

Obesity, sedatives, smoking and alcohol are some of the main factors involved that put you at increased risk of snoring. In themselves they do not result in snoring, as snoring is caused by vibrations of the soft tissue in your head and neck. While we are asleep, our airways narrow and relax, affecting the air pressure – resulting in the vibration of the soft tissue in snorers that can have an impact on the quality of your health and relationships.

What causes snoring

Snoring treatments will depend on how you snore. Your snoring could be the result of vibration of the nasal passages, soft palate, base of your tongue, tonsils or uvula. A full consultation will help to determine how we could help and to better understand how you snore and why.

The Private Clinic

It’s not easy to work out if more women are snoring but it’s certainly interesting to think about it and why more and more people are seeking treatments from our leading medical team. We have lots more information available on our website and on the rest of the blog about snoring and how we could help: https://www.theprivateclinic.co.uk/treatments/snoring/

Our Roadmap to Stopping Snoring

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Snoring treatments have more than just the ‘power’ to resolve it; they also seem to have the ‘power’ to confuse. Grand claims can often be just that as everyone clamours to be heard. Understanding your snoring and how it could be tied to your lifestyle is often the first step necessary for you to begin tackling the problem, which puts strain on your health and the people around you as it disturbs your own and their sleep. Surgery is, naturally, at the more intense end of the scale of treatments and is treated accordingly by our Clinic, with our experienced team at the forefront of their field.

1. Understand Why You Are Snoring & What Is and Isn’t Helping

Q. What causes snoring?

A. Snoring is caused by vibrations of soft tissue in your head and neck as you breathe in. The offending soft tissue in question could be: nasal passages; soft palate (layer of tissue at the back of the roof of the mouth); base of the tongue; tonsils (two small glands right at the back of the throat before the pharynx) and/or the uvula (a small cone-shaped section of tissue that hangs from the soft palate between your tonsils)

snoring

Q. Why do I snore?

A. There are a considerable number of factors involved in snoring. Some help to cause it; whilst others aggravate it. Alcohol consumption, being overweight, stuffy or blocked noses, some sedatives and smoking can all aggravate and increase snoring. Certainly maintaining a healthier lifestyle will improve your health dramatically but it could alleviate and stave away many conditions and problems – most notably your snoring.

2. Knowledge Is Power, Actions Help Too

Q. What shall I do first?

A. Consulting your GP is usually the first step for many conditions, which many don’t take. Snoring is no different. The internet has opened up a world of medical information to terrify us but overall we benefit from this openness as the doctor/patient divide narrows with better education. However, we must be careful. Sorting out what is information and what is misinformation is hard. Look for reputable sources, testimonials, experience, substantiated facts, engagement and the look and feel of a website. A polished, navigable and informative website is a good start.

Q. Is it really going to work?

A. As we have seen from the vast majority of our patients, buying over the counter devices and remedies for snoring are usually the first steps sufferers usually take. As our very own snoring specialist, Professor Kamami, points out, “most of my English patients have tried all these mouth guard devices (sold on internet), not custom made by the dentists, and they are coming for an ENT consultation after the failure of mouth devices.”

Naturally, their efficacy depends on the individual and how much discomfort and cost you are willing to put up with for your health. For those visiting our clinics, on the whole, these ‘solutions’ haven’t worked for them. So a next step is necessary.

3. The Private Clinic

Q. What do you offer?

A. At our clinic we offer 3 treatments: Laser treatment for unblocking the nose; Laser Assisted Uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP) and Bipolar Radiofrequency Thermotherapy (RFITT). Our LAUP procedure was pioneered by Professor Kamami, who explains, “LAUP is practiced all over the world with the FDA approval since 1993 and most of ENT scientific societies are recommending it.”

In the initial consultation you will be assessed and if suitable the right procedure will be explained and recommended to you. If your tongue is causing the snoring, then our treatments will not be suitable. We have plenty more information on our website to help you understand the treatments. Unlike reports, the procedures do not result in voice changes, which occurs infrequently with the UPPP procedure.

Q. Is the treatment painful?

A. The treatments aren’t painful, as they are performed under local anaesthetic, but there is a degree of discomfort. However the procedures are quick so the discomfort does not last for long. The procedures themselves will typically result in a sore throat feeling for a couple of weeks, requiring painkillers. Aside from that there are very few associated side effects from the procedure. After surgery, if you gain weight, the added weight will put added pressure on your airways, increasingly the likelihood of different types of snoring.

The Right Treatment for You

Tackling snoring requires understanding the individual. It is also important to keep in mind our treatments are not panaceas for everyone. Having tried many of the over the counter solutions available and spoken to their GPs, patients come to The Private Clinic understanding that we offer specific medical solutions to snoring but we still turn away 40% of consultations after offering advice. If you believe our snoring treatments could help you, book a consultation with our clinic: https://www.theprivateclinic.co.uk/treatments/snoring/