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Modified barbed soft palatal posterior pillar webbing flap palatopharyngoplasty

  • ENT • Original Article
  • Published:
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Abstract

Background

The soft palate and the lateral pharyngeal walls contribute to the collapse of the upper airway in patients with snoring and obstructive sleep apnea. In this study, the original soft palatal webbing flap palatopharyngoplasty for both soft palatal and oropharyngeal lateral wall collapse has been modified to include all tonsil grades and to apply the barbed suture technique.

Methods

Twenty-one adults with significant soft palatal webbing, lateral pharyngeal wall collapse, and tonsil hypertrophy of any grade were selected for the study with a minimum follow-up period of 6 months.

Results

Snoring was improved with snoring scale reduced from 9.4 ± 1.6 to 1.7 ± 3.2 (p < 0.005). The preoperative to postoperative apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) statistically improved from 45.7 ± 2.6 to 12.3 ± 3.9 (p < 0.005) and lowest O2 saturation from 73.8 ± 3.6 to 89.4 ± 1.9 % (p < 0.005). Postoperative endoscopic findings showed significant improvement in soft palatal and lateral pharyngeal wall collapse. There were no significant intraoperative or postoperative complications.

Conclusion

Modified barbed soft palatal webbing flap palatopharyngoplasty provided objective improvement of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in adults with soft palatal, lateral pharyngeal wall collapse and tonsillar hypertrophy, with no significant complications and has the potential to serve as an effective alternative for these cases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Department of Otolaryngology, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt

    Ahmed Mohamed Mohyee Eldin Elbassiouny

  2. The Department of Otolaryngology, Al Salam International Hospital, P.O. BOX: 11023, Dasma, 3515, Kuwait City, Kuwait

    Ahmed Mohamed Mohyee Eldin Elbassiouny

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  1. Ahmed Mohamed Mohyee Eldin Elbassiouny
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Correspondence to Ahmed Mohamed Mohyee Eldin Elbassiouny.

Ethics declarations

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Funding

No funding was received for this research.

Conflict of interest

The author certifies that he has no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge, or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Disclosures

No financial relationships for this manuscript and work.

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Elbassiouny, A.M.M.E. Modified barbed soft palatal posterior pillar webbing flap palatopharyngoplasty. Sleep Breath 20, 829–836 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-016-1335-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-016-1335-y

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