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PHARYNGEAL AIRWAY VOLUME FOLLOWING ...

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Surgical Therapy<br />

Surgical treatment is indicated with a respiratory<br />

distress index (RDI) greater than 20, 28 oxyhemoglobin<br />

desaturation below 90%, excessive daytime sleepiness,<br />

significant cardiac arrhythmias associated with<br />

obstruction, when a specific anatomic abnormality is<br />

identified, non-surgical treatments are rejected, patients<br />

are medically stable, and they desire surgical therapy. 16<br />

The respiratory distress index is also known as the apnea-<br />

hypopnia index (AHI). 28 It is a measurement of airflow and<br />

is calculated as the total number of apnea (complete<br />

obstruction of airflow) and partial apnea (partial<br />

obstruction of airflow) episodes per hour of sleep. 28<br />

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty<br />

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP) is a surgical<br />

procedure introduced by Fujita et al. in 1981, 29 involving<br />

“shortening the soft palate, amputating the uvula, and<br />

removing redundant lateral and posterior wall mucosa from<br />

the oral pharynx.” 4 Even though the soft palate is<br />

shortened, it can thicken, resulting in a narrower airway. 4<br />

UPPP has a 50% success rate, 30 possibly because it only<br />

addresses the retropalatal region of the airway, when many<br />

patients experience obstruction at multiple sites. 31<br />

8

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