Nasal Surgery

[mlentzner]

I've been recommended for a septum realignment and a turbinate reduction. Funny thing is that my sleep-study came back clear (I do snore, but no apnea), but the doctor wants to do the procedure anyway since he says my nasal airway is very marginal.

You're the only person I know who's had this. Any comments?

Thanks,

Matt

[Mark Rippetoe]

Mine was a piece of cake because I had an excellent surgeon. Yours may not be. If he just wants to do the surgery, I'd tell him that we'll wait until the reasons are more compelling.

[Michael Loucas]

I got my tonsils out, adenoids removed as well as a turbinates reductions all in the same surgery. Life was hell for a few weeks, but I definitely feel a lot better.

[mlentzner]

If you don't mind me asking, what was the condition that drove you have the procedure? The doctor promised a dramatic improvement in my breathing. Did you notice a big difference after?

I've known there was a problem for quite some time. Any strenuous exercise turns me into a mouth breather. I tried the strips and all that already. Didn't help.

There's a possibility that the procedure will be at no cost to me because of the funny way my insurance works - assuming I can get it done before the end of 2010. That's no reason to get something unnecessary done, but it certainly lowers the bar.

Thanks for your wisdom as usual,

Matt

[Mark Rippetoe]

My breathing was impaired, and I had had trouble with my nose all my life. He is a member, we traded it out, and I knew he was an excellent surgeon. It's better now, but only about 50%.

[RobCor]

OP, I've had both operations separately.

Having my septum re-broken and straightened had me in bed for 3-4 days. I don't mean "at home" when I say "bed." I mean "bed." The reason being that I bled from my nose for days. It becomes an ooze eventually, but I imagine that if I'd have done a set of heavy squats anytime soon after that surgery, that wound would bust open and my nose would start firehosing the gym floor with my blood. I was about 20 at the time, fyi. Oh, and, over time, my turbinate re-bent itself.

The turbinoplasty was a cinch. I've had it twice, since the first time my ENT was somewhat conservative. Mine was the type where he numbs your nose with an injection, then sticks a sharp electric needle in there and shocks it until it dies. After that, the dead tissue slowly shrinks and sloughs off. You're all stuffed up for 2-3 days, but fine after that, and it continues to improve slowly over 6 months as the damaged tissue dies. I only bled a teeny bit for about 30 minutes each time.

My breathing is definitely better now, but I still have a pronounced difference between my left and right nostrils because of my septum. The right one is more open, so I tend to sleep on my left side so that the blood flows to my left turbinate, leaving the right nostril wide open. There are different ways of reducing turbinates, all of them more bloody. I can't speak to their effectiveness.

[Michael Loucas]

I still breathe through my mouth, only out of habit. I have to consciously think to breath out of my nose, but my passageway is way more open now.

[jdavid]

My nose was broken a few months ago when a bar with 130lbs weight fell directly onto from about 1.5 feet. I was stupidly benching using a chair as a rack. Not a good chair. Very bloody.

I now cannot breath through my right nostril. I need to have it checked out but no health insurance. One of these days I will. I'm not looking forward to the procedure it might take but I sure would like to breathe properly again.

[Mark Rippetoe]

Tuition is sometimes expensive.