Atlanta Snoring Institute Offers Pillar Procedure To Stop Sleep Apnea & Snoring

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010 at 9:17 PM

SleepApneaDisorder/[Press Release]/- Atlanta, GA (Vocus) October 6, 2010/Snoring is a sleep depriving problem affecting 40% of men and 23% of women according to the National Sleep Foundation. Many couples sleep apart due to loud, habitual snoring. This can lead to a lack of intimacy and disharmony in the relationship. These problems lead many people to seek out snoring cures that are safe, effective, and permanent. These treatments and more are offered from the finest board-certified physicians in the country at the new location of the Atlanta Snoring Institute. Located in Stockbridge, GA, the new office is a twenty minutes drive from downtown Atlanta, conveniently offering snoring and sleep apnea treatment to residents living south of the metropolitan area.

The new office joins the Atlanta, Riverdale, and Fayetteville locations in providing premiere snoring treatment and personal care. Aside from being a nuisance, snoring can be a sign of a serious medical problem called obstructive sleep apnea. Not everyone that snores has OSA; but everyone with OSA snores. People with untreated obstructive sleep apnea have a much greater risk of high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke and even automobile accidents.

Treatment for Snoring in One Simple Office Visit to the Atlanta Snoring Institute

Simple Snoring and some OSA can be treated with simple office procedures at ASI. In the past, surgical procedures have been used to take out the loose tissue that vibrates and causes snoring noise. These procedures are effective, but also painful requiring general anesthesia and time off work to recover.

Simple Snoring without obstructive sleep apnea can be effectively treated right in the office in the majority of patients depending on what part of the airway is causing the disturbance.

“Snoring without obstructive sleep apnea is usually caused by two different areas of the airway, the nose and the soft palate which is the back part of the roof of your mouth,” says Howard Herman, M.D. Medical Director and Founder of ASI.

Nasal treatment in the office includes reducing the turbinates with a radiofrequency device. “This simple snoring remedy actually shrinks tissue in the nose that is enlarged due to chronic sinus infections, allergies, and a few other conditions” says Dr. Herman. “It’s done right in the office and takes about 15 minutes using only local anesthetic to numb the area. Almost immediately my patients notice they can breathe better through their nose.”

“If the patient has underlying causes like allergies or sinus infections as ENT’s the doctors at ASI are specialists to also treat those to make sure the condition doesn’t come back again.”

How Does the Pillar Procedure Stop Snoring?

The main cause of snoring noise is vibration of the loose soft palate tissue. Rather than doing surgery to remove and tighten the soft palate tissue, the doctors at ASI perform the Pillar Procedure to slightly stiffen it, which eliminates snoring. During the Pillar Procedure, small polyester implants are placed inside the soft palate through a specially designed delivery tool. The procedure is performed using only local anesthetic to numb the area and takes about 20 minutes total. “The actual implants only take 2 or 3 minutes to insert, most of the time of the procedure is spent numbing the area” says Dr. Herman. Over the next three months, the implants work with a natural response from your body and stiffen the soft palate. This stops the tissue vibration that can cause chronic snoring.

“The biggest advantage of the Pillar Procedure over other snoring treatments is that the implants are permanent,” according to Dr. Herman. Plus, the minimally-invasive snoring surgery prevents the soft palate tissue collapse that can cause obstructive sleep apnea. “The Pillar Procedure snoring treatment has good outcomes in clinical trials for both snoring and OSA. I’ve also seen those outcomes and even better results in my own patients.”

About Atlanta Snoring Institute

Atlanta Snoring Institute is dedicated to the treatment of snoring and OSA. The physicians are some of the finest Board-Certified Otolaryngologists (Ear, Nose & Throat specialists) with special interest in the treatment and management of snoring and sleep apnea. Atlanta Snoring Institute is part of ENT of Georgia and is run and managed by the ENT of Georgia physicians serving Atlanta patients for over 20 years.

The expert physicians of ASI offer a full range of medical, minimally-invasive and surgical cures for snoring and obstructive sleep apnea as well as other ENT related conditions. ASI is dedicated to your health and will work with you to provide the best treatment options to effectively treat your snoring or OSA. Visit our website for additional information on what causes snoring and obstructive sleep apnea as well as the latest medical treatments offered at ASI.