Objective To evaluate the effectiveness ofradiofrequency volumetric tissue reduction （RFVTR） in the treatment of sleep disordered breathing （SDB ）. Methods We searched The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials （Issue 1, 2005）, MEDLINE （1966 to Apr. 2005）, EMBASE （1989 to Apr. 2005）, CINAHL （1982 to Dec. 2000）, VIP （1989 to Dec. 2004） , CJFD （1979 to 2005）, WANFANG DATA （1977 to 2004） , and CBMdisc （1978 to 2005）. The bibliographies of all papers retrieved in full text form and relevant narrative reviews were searched for additional publications. All randomized controlled clinical trials （RCT） or quasi-randomized controlled trials （quasi-RCT） or prospective cohort studies of RFVTR alone or in combination with other treatments compared with placebo or other treatments were included. Data were extracted independently from the trial reports by the two authors. Meta-analysis was performed using RevMan software. Results There were 11 studies including 540 patients met the inclusion criteria for this review, among which five were RCTs, six were prospective cohort studies, and all trials were of lower methodological quality. RFVTR showed benefit over placebo in apnea index （AI）, but this benefit was not seen in other polysorrmography （PSG） parameters, symptom and quality of life, psychomotor vigilance pain, swallowing difficulty and adverse events. Compared with continuous positive airway pressure （CPAP）, uvulopalatopharyngoplasty （UPPP） and laser assisted uvulopalatoplasty （LAUP） , RFVTR was more effective in psychomotor vigilance pain and swallowing difficulty, but this effect was not seen in PSG parameters, symptom and quality of life. Conclusions RFVTR is more effective than placebo in AI improvement and other treatments in decreasing postoperative pain and other adverse events ; but this benefit was not seen in improving quality of sleeping and life. More well-designed randomized trials need to be conducted to identify the effectiveness and the influence on effectiveness of severity and frequency of treatment.