NightLase — Laser Snoring Reduction

NightLase at Eva Clinic is a non-invasive Er:YAG laser treatment for chronic snoring, performed entirely inside the mouth without surgical instruments, anaesthesia, or recovery. The Fotona laser uses SMOOTH mode pulses to gently heat the soft palate, uvula, and adjacent pharyngeal mucosa, stimulating collagen contraction and tightening the tissue that vibrates to produce snoring sounds. Three sessions spaced 6 weeks apart constitute the standard protocol; clients and their partners typically report significant snoring reduction or elimination after the course, with effects lasting 1–2 years. The procedure is safe for ongoing use, with retreatment courses available as effects naturally fade.

Snoring is produced by the vibration of relaxed soft tissue in the upper airway — primarily the soft palate, uvula, tonsillar pillars, and posterior tongue — during sleep, when muscle tone decreases and the airway narrows. Conventional approaches range from positional therapy and mandibular advancement devices to surgical uvulopalatoplasty (UPPP), each with significant limitations in efficacy, tolerability, or invasiveness. NightLase (Fotona) applies non-ablative Er:YAG laser energy to the mucosal surfaces of the soft palate and uvula via an intra-oral handpiece. The SMOOTH mode pulses heat the submucosal collagen to a thermal contraction threshold without burning the mucosal surface, causing the palatal tissue to contract, stiffen, and reduce in surface area — thereby reducing the vibration amplitude responsible for snoring sounds. Over subsequent weeks, new collagen deposition further reinforces this stiffening effect. At Eva Clinic, the NightLase session begins with the client seated in a treatment chair with the mouth open; no anaesthesia is required as the SMOOTH mode heating is perceived as mild warmth rather than pain. MUDr. Chovančíková uses the intra-oral handpiece to deliver overlapping passes across the posterior palate and uvula, with each pass lasting 1–2 seconds at low fluence — the cumulative thermal dose achieves the desired collagen stimulation without surface injury. The session takes 20–25 minutes. Post-treatment, mild warmth or sensitivity in the palate for a few hours is the only expected sensation. Clients can eat, drink, and speak normally immediately. No anaesthesia residual effects complicate discharge. The Fotona NightLase protocol consists of 3 sessions spaced 6 weeks apart. Clinical studies (Miracki and Vizintin, 2013; Jovanović et al., 2017) report significant improvement in Epworth Sleepiness Scale scores and partner-reported snoring intensity in 80–90% of treated subjects after the three-session course. Effects are maintained for 1–2 years before the tissue gradually relaxes again; a maintenance retreatment course restores the benefit. NightLase is not indicated for severe obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) — clients with suspected OSA should undergo polysomnography and ENT assessment before considering this treatment. It is appropriate for primary snoring and mild positional OSA. Contraindications include active oral infection, uncontrolled OSA requiring CPAP, and recent oral surgery.