The Diagnosis and Treatment of Snoring in Adults

Snoring in adults is a common cause of distress for patients and their bedpartners and calls for appropriate counseling, diagnostic evaluation, and treatment.

A systematic literature search in the PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases was carried out in February 2018 and yielded pertinent publications from 2000 onward. The guideline was created according to the methodological requirements of the Association of the Scientific Medical Societies in Germany (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der wissenschaft- lichen medizinischen Fachgesellschaften, AWMF).

The diagnostic evaluation of snoring is based on the history and phyical examination. In certain situations, a specialized sleep study should be performed to obtain objec- tive findings. The recommended methods of conservative treatment include, in particular, positioning therapy and weight loss. Mandibular protrusion splints can lessen snoring in suitable cases. If breathing through the nose is impaired, rhinological or rhinosurgical treatment is recommended; for certain anatomical abnormalities of the soft palate, a suitable minimally invasive surgical procedure can be considered. The level of the available evidence is low, as most of the under- lying clinical studies involved small patient groups and short follow-up.

In the treatment of snoring, evidence-based recommendations derived from the findings of randomized trials can be given for selected situations, yet the overall state of the evidence on many diagnostic and therapeutic tech- niques remains limited.