OBSERVATION OF THE MECHANISM OF SNORING USING SLEEP NASENDOSCOPY

We have performed sleep nasendoscopy on 54 adult snorers in whom obstr uctive sleep apnoea had been excluded by an overnight sleep study. The purpose of the study was to identify the site or sites of noise produ ction in each case. This was successfully achieved in 50 of the 54 and 70% showed palatal flutter snoring only. In a further 20%, palatal fl utter snoring was combined with evidence of noise generation at anothe r site. The second site was supraglottic in 10%, tonsillar in 8% and t ongue base in 2%. The tongue base was also the sole site of noise gene ration in 8% and the epiglottis was the sole site in 2%. This study su ggests that sleep nasendoscopy can identify different mechanisms of sn oring in individual patients. This information is likely to be of use in formulating a logical surgical treatment plan.