Snoring in adults can be a very complex problem that often has several underlying causes. Severe snoring can lead to obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) which is a condition where the structures of the mouth and throat collapse causing a person to temporarily stop breathing. These episodes may last for several seconds, or in severe cases can be more than one minute, and they may happen many times each night. A person will eventually wake slightly to start breathing again. This leads to unrefreshing sleep and daytime tiredness.

Causes of snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea can include:

• nasal obstruction
• being above average weight
• large tonsils
• large tongue
• narrow throat