Definition - What does somnoplasty mean?
Somnoplasty, also called radiofrequency tissue reduction, is an outpatient surgical procedure designed to treat acute or chronic sleep disorders that interfere with otherwise normal circadian rhythm cycles. Many patients undergo somnoplasty as an adjunct therapeutic intervention after exhausting other potential remedies to improve biorhythms. Somnoplasty is commonly used to treat sleep apnea, which obstructs the airway in the nose and throat, causing sporadic sleeping patterns.
SureHire explains somnoplasty
Sleep disorders can impose personal and professional strains on people, limiting their capacity to perform regular activities that often demand alertness, concentration, and efficiency. A number of underpinning factors are often related to lifestyle habits, physiological impairments and/or psychological disturbances ranging from alcohol and/or caffeine consumption, obesity, anxiety/depression, and workplace stress. A doctor will correlate a patient’s medical history with persistent signs and symptoms that might suggest an underlying sleep disorder.
Sleep is a primary homeostatic function of the body, but a vast majority of individuals fail to receive adequate rest, often incurring detrimental lifelong health issues as a result. For instance, people who are diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are candidates for developing heart disease and/or suffering a stroke. In the workplace, individuals with sleep disorders tend to experience chronic fatigue, undercutting job performance and productivity. Somnoplasty can serve as an effective treatment modality for patients who work, for example, in transportation that entails operating a commercial vehicle.
Somnoplasty is a viable approach in widening and reinforcing soft tissue lining at the back of the throat to facilitate breathing through the airway. With an increasingly aging workforce, sleep disorders become more prevalent, giving employers an incentive to establish prevention strategy programs. A health and safety policy that encompasses somnoplasty as a soluble measure in treating sleep disorders can effectively deter work-related accidents while also reducing workers compensation claims.
