Local Houston Surgeon Cures Sleep Apnea
A local surgeon has found a cure to sleep apnea, a disease that robs millions of Americans of a good night’s rest. People suffering with sleep apnea will stop breathing several times during the night.
Thelma Braxton was the very first person in Houston to receive a robotic surgery to cure sleep apnea. “It’s scary. It is so scary. When you sleep and your breath is being taken away it is scary,” she said.
But now that she is cured, she is almost giddy with praise for her doctor at UT Health Science Center.
“He’s my hero,” she laughed. “He is totally.”
Dr. Ron Karni is an ear, nose and throat cancer surgeon who uses a robot to cure sleep apnea patients—patients who have some kind of benign mass partially blocking their airway. With extremely flexible robotic arms and a camera on a scope, he can remove the blockage.
Before the robots, surgeons could not see very well deep in the airway to remove obstructions. Often they had to make incisions in the throat. Karni operates at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center. He uses a special 3-D monitor to see. A 27-year-old woman was the second to have the surgery.
Karni invited us to view everything on another monitor. The operation happens very quickly, it only takes about 45 minutes. He said the side effects are minor.
“The sore throat is the same sore throat that a five-year-old would have if they had a tonsillectomy,” he said. Two weeks after her operation, Braxton felt like a new woman who was finally enjoying restful sleep.
“Wonderful, wonderful, I sleep all night, I mean, no problems jumping up,” she said.
Karni said insurance covers the operation.
Great news.looking forward to it.!
I am 82 year old and have been sleeping with a Bi pap for about 10 years. I have a problem during the night of pulling my mask off and going back to sleep with out it. I wake up with leg cramps and sometimes tingling in my arms. I put the mask back on and go back to sleep or get up tired. Wanting to sleep some more. I have grown to dislike the mask so much that when I heard of this new procedure I got on the internet to see what was available and what the procedure was like. I am healthy take no medications have soreness in my knees and left hip. I use a cane to take some wt off of the hip. I weigh 163 lbs and am 5 ft 11 inchees tall. My son recently told me outside of the knees and hip I had just about hit the jack pot in being healthy. I have another son in SC who has a sleep study program in his medical practice. I will check in with him. but would like to know more about your procedure. Thank you very Much. Walter Evans Jr.
Well, I too was very excited about the Tors surgery and had it done Feb 2 , 2012. It was a total, horrendous FAILURE. In fact, the apnea actually got worse. Further, the pain was beyond belief…I lost 25 lbs in 3 weeks. I consulted with 3 different ENT chaps before deciding to go ahead with the surgery. …all 3 claimed 80 percent success rates….pure nonsense. Aftervthe surgery, I was left with a sour taste in my mouth….still have it…24/7…it NEVER goes away. Following the Tors surgery, I had a Repose procedure performed….it didn’t work either! Currently, I am considering a trach as there is nothing left to try. I used a cpap for abt 30 years until it stopped being effective abt a year ago.