Major League Baseball

Napoli to have facial reconstruction surgery due to sleep apnea issues

Published Oct. 14, 2014 11:02 a.m. ET

share

facebookxredditlink

Sam Gardner

At points over the last couple seasons, it was sometimes difficult to remember what Mike Napoli's face looked like under all that beard, but in a few weeks, the recently clean-shaven Boston Red Sox first baseman will be undergoing facial reconstruction that few will soon forget -- even if his visual appearance doesn't change.

Napoli, who just finished up a 17-homer, 55-RBI campaign in his second year in Boston, has been battling sleep apnea for quite some time and, according to WEEI, the 32-year-old will be having major surgery on Nov. 4 to finally fix it for good.

The procedure, called bimaxillary advancement, involves doctors moving the upper and lower jaw forward, positioning them in such a way that the airway will no longer be obstructed. One of the most common symptoms of sleep apnea is pauses in breathing throughout the night caused by a collapse of the airway. These lapses often result in patients springing awake at night, making choking sounds.

Bimaxillary advancement often is seen as a last resort for patients who have not been able to find relief through less invasive means, and as this past season drew to a close, Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington hinted that Napoli was considering all of his options to fix the issue in time for next year.

"As sleep issues do for people, they tend to get worse as time goes on and (Napoli's) has," Cherington told Boston.com last month. "It's affected him. So because we have a longer offseason, we may look to work with him on some different ways to manage that going forward. We don't know what that's going to mean yet, but it's something we're working with him on."

Any procedure that requires the breaking of both jaws is obviously significant, and as with any major surgery, Napoli's will require a lengthy recovery time, as patients are instructed to avoid chewing for a month or more after the procedure. But if the operation is successful, Napoli should not only be back to full strength in plenty of time to join his teammates next spring, but should also be sleeping much easier when he does.

"I've been dealing with sleep apnea for a long time, my whole career," Napoli said to WEEI in a text. "I've tried numerous things and none of them worked. Dental mouth piece, CPAP machine, medicines ... It's just gotten to the point where I have to get this done."

share

Get more from Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more

in this topic

Major League Baseball