[Sleep apnea syndrome. Evaluation following uvulopalatopharyngoplasty]

20 cases of uvulopalatopharyngoplasty performed on patients suffering from sleep apnea syndrome have been studied with a pre- and post-operative polysomnographic recording. Eleven patients (55%) responded to this therapy and showed a significative decrease of their post-operative apnea-hypopnea index. An increase of the mean oxygen saturation was noticed during sleep. On the contrary, the sleep quality did not improve. Age, weight, apnea index are not predictive factors influencing the result of UPPP. Even if UPPP has a relatively poor success rate it still should be proposed to patients suffering from sleep apnea syndrome as it remains the simplest and best tolerated surgical treatment.