Posted by Captin Cannuck on June 17, 2008 at 13:22:54:In Reply to: MMA disaster posted by sleepdeprived on June 17, 2008 at 08:33:29:
I think that what happened to you was unfortunate, but unforeseeble. I know exactly how you feel. You just have to be tough. Stiff upper lip!!! You can do it.
I recommend that you seek out second opinions on the UPPP. That surgery is very controvercial and often given to the wrong people for the wrong reasons. Some people might benefit, but others end up worse off due to scar tissue reducing the airspace in the pharnygeal area. There has been lots written on that. See Dr. Dement, "The Promise of Sleep", for example.
A really good surgeon for you to see is Dr. Jeffrey Princell in Atlanta. He is an expert who has written many articles on MMAs and is very conservative in using UPPPs. Dr. Li in Palo Alto has modified the UPPP technique such that it is less invasive and preserves the uvula. His way of doing that operation involves less cutting and thus less chance of scar tissue making the area tighter. You can see his explanation in the Ask the Expert section. In his words, the (traditional) UPPP is fundamentally flawed. That is the opinion of a surgeon who has published over 100 articles in medical journals on sleep surgery.
I really recommend you doing lots research on UPPP. It could be that you are in the minority who really needs that operation, but best to make sure. As for me, I really wish I had not had the LAUP surgery (a variation of UPPP). I would give almost anything to turn back the clock.
Best of luck.