Otolaryngology (Ear, Nose & Throat)
Do you snore or know of someone who snores heavily during their sleep? Do you experience a sudden difficulty in speaking, or even tiredness or pain in your throat when you speak? You might be suffering from obstructive sleep apnoea or even voice disorder.
Symptoms like snoring and hoarseness in the throat may appear trivial in its initial stages. However, these ‘harmless’ symptoms may lead to more serious health problems if treatment is put off for too long a period of time.
At our ENT Centre, our specialist and team of nurses will treat you of all your ENT problems and will always strive to prescribe non-surgical treatment for your ENT problem, whenever possible.
Obstructive Sleep Apnoea/ Snoring
Over 30% of the adult population or 60% of men over 40-years-of-age, snore. Snoring may not be considered an illness but a snorer is often considered a source of irritation or anger for his or her partner. In severe cases, snoring may even cause strain to household relationships or marriage.
If snoring is associated with symptoms of daytime sleepiness, tiredness, poor concentration, poor memory, morning headaches, mood change, irritability, choking sensations at night, a patient may be suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA). Patients suffering from OSA also commonly suffer from obesity, hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, stroke and diabetes mellitus.
A patient suffering from OSA encounters repeated episodes of airway obstruction that occur during sleep, resulting in snoring and reduction in blood oxygen saturation. It is advisable to treat snoring and OSA at the soonest time possible so as to prevent detrimental health consequences.
Voice Disorders
A change in pitch, quality and loudness in a voice often denotes a potential voice disorder. A person experiencing from voice disorder may encounter difficulties in speaking in a normal manner and may experience tiredness, pain and/or hoarseness in their throat. Most often, the voice box might be misused or abused and this injury affects the vocal nodules and polyps.
Seeking early treatment helps resolve voice disorders faster and prevents it from worsening. Voice therapy can also help resolve an original voice problem and teach general speaking skills which are beneficial in daily life and helps to prevent future voice problems.