Abstract
Sleep apnea syndrome(SAS) was defined by Guilleminault et al. as“episodes of apnea each lasting for 10 sec. or longer repeated 30 times or more during 7 hours of sleeping” or “episodes of apnea repeated 5 times or more during one hour of non-REM sleeping” in 1976. SAS is classified into obstructive, central, and mixed type categories. Central SAS is said to account for 4% of all SAS, and obstructive and mixed-type SAS the residual major proportion. In the department of otorhinolaryngology, obstructive and mixed-type SAS are treated by surgical intervention. Obstructive apnea is divided into rhinogenous, rhinopharyngeal, middle pharyngeal, and inferior pharyngeal, laryngeal, and tracheal apnea according to the site of obstruction. In practice, since rhinogenous and middle pharyngeal obstruction are common, surgical correction of septal deviation, inferior nasal concha resection, tonsillectomy, uvulo-palato-pharyngoplasty (UPPP), and midline glossectomy have been used. Tracheotomy is performed in the most severe cases of central SAS. Seventy-six percent of patients with SAS have associated allergic rhinitis. Treatment of allergic rhinitis is useful for the management of SAS.
