Hyoid Myotomy and Suspension
Hyoid Suspension
Hyoid bone is a horseshoe shaped bone in the neck behind the tongue. It suspends the tongue muscles in the neck region. By pulling the hyoid forward this would stabilize the muscles of tongue from behind and as a result open the airway. By stabilizing the hyoid bone in a more forward position it would help improve airflow in the back of the throat (hypopharyngeal) area. Hyoid suspension alone is not an efficacious treatment for hypopharyngeal airway obstruction in most patients with obstructive sleep apnea. Hyoid suspension also, does not provide results equivalent to those reported for genioglossus advancement or multi-session tongue radiofrequency. Some studies have shown at best there is 17% chance of improvement in sleep apnea symptoms. This procedure is best suited if combined with other procedures where tongue muscle itself is repositioned more forward such as genioglossus advancement or genioplasty. By combining these two procedures some studies have shown up to 78% success rate in patient improvement of sleep apnea symptoms.
Hyoid suspension with genioglossus advancement
- Patients with moderate obstructive sleep apnea
- Absence of obesity
- Combined with genioglossus or genioplasty advancement
Some of the complications with this procedure include:
- Wound infections
- Bleeding
- Pain
- Airway obstruction
The occurrence of the above complications although possible, but generally are rare.
