Division of Sleep Surgery
There is no substitute for a good night’s sleep, yet millions of Americans suffer from a lack of sleep each day or are interrupting others’ sleep by snoring.
Sleep deprivation affects memory, disease resistance, and leaves many struggling to stay alert. Sleep disorders can also create problems for intimacy and personal relationships.
UPMC’s team at the Division of Sleep Surgery, including the region's only board-certified sleep medicine specialist, Ryan Soose, MD, strives to correctly diagnose patients with sleep disordered breathing, snoring, and sleep apnea to help alleviate the stress and medical and personal side effects that can result from having one of these disorders.
UPMC ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists work closely with sleep specialists to ensure that therapeutic options are discussed in detail before considering and discussing surgical intervention options for snoring and sleep apnea.
In the News
Read the following articles on the Western Pennsylvania Guide to Good Health website.
About Us
Snoring troubles nearly half of adult men and 25 percent of adult women in this country. Some people who snore also have obstructive sleep apnea, and over time, this can lead to chronic fatigue and excessive daytime sleepiness.
Ear, nose, and throat specialists are important members of the medical teams that treat patients suffering from snoring and sleep apnea. ENT doctors provide the surgical role in treating snoring and sleep apnea.
Patients may see a variety of doctors from several specialties during the diagnosis and treatment processes, but an ENT doctor will provide consultative services regarding potential surgical techniques. Surgery, typically, is not the first or only option for people who snore or have sleep apnea.
It is important to understand that ENT doctors consider each patient on an individual basis.
Treatment for snoring and sleep apnea is very specific to each patient and the team at the Division of Sleep Surgery is committed to considering all therapeutic options before performing surgery to ensure the best and most comfortable care for their patients.
Our Experts
Learn more about our physicians and their specialties below.
Patient Information
Diagnosing and treating snoring and sleep apnea is a process that requires many steps in order to find the most effective individualized care for patients.
Ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctors can play roles in both the diagnostic and treatment processes, but typically are the doctors performing surgery if needed.
Though a patient may see an ENT specialist first, it usually is recommended that patients be evaluated at a sleep lab or center before surgery is considered.
UPMC’s Sleep Medicine Center is an example of one of these types of labs that performs sleep studies, and is the only multidisciplinary sleep medicine facility accredited by the Academy of Sleep Medicine in western Pennsylvania.
Learn more about sleep studies, tips on improving sleep, and UPMC’s Sleep Medicine Center here.
Conditions/Disorders Treated
Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a condition in which breathing is repeatedly interrupted during sleep. The time period for which the breathing stops is usually 10 to 30 seconds. When these episodes occur repeatedly, sleep apnea can seriously disrupt the quality of sleep.
Snoring
Snoring occurs when air cannot move freely through the air passages at the back of the mouth and nose. This causes vibration of the roof of the mouth and uvula, which creates the snoring sound. The smaller the airway and the more obstruction, the louder the snoring becomes.
Your First Visit
It is important for a patient to be prepared for his or her first visit with an ear, nose, and throat specialist about a sleep disorder.
Patients will be asked to give a family medical history, detailed sleep history, and health insurance information.
During the first visit, the doctor will perform a physical examination, throat examination, and may perform a flexible endoscopy.
A flexible endoscopy is a painless procedure that lasts between two and three minutes, during which the doctor examines inside the nasal cavity, voice box, tongue, and adenoids by inserting a tiny camera in a tube up the patient’s nose. This will allow for the doctor to have an up-close perspective and provide a more thorough diagnosis.
Surgical Procedures
Sleep studies are used in the diagnosis process for patients suffering from snoring or sleep apnea.
Once the results of a patient’s sleep study are reviewed and therapeutic treatment is considered and attempted, the ENT doctor will determine if surgery and what type of surgery would be beneficial to the patient.