Nose Surgery

[nutinbutdust]

Any one here ever had a Septoplasty, Turbinate Reduction and Turbinate Cautery? Vet, I know you had something done to your nose not sure what is was. Trying to figure out what to expect. Scheduled in about 2 weeks, hoping it helps with sinus infections, allergies and migraines.

[KantoSooner]

Don't know about those surgeries in particular, but I did break my nose three times and, absolutely inevitably, you will end up, absent mindedly reaching up and rubbing your nose with your sleave to cope with an itch about 3 weeks later.

And you'll remember the pain for years thereafter.

[soonersis]

I had all three plus rhinoplasty about 17 years ago. The worst part was trying not to sneeze while your nose is packed. When mine was unpacked it was like a whole new world because I could breathe through my nose for the first time in my life. I suggest having frozen peas instead of a standard ice bag for any swelling.

[olevetonahill]

Other than introducing my nose to someones fist , Its never been touched

I had My eyes did. worked great

I do barely remember having to have my nose cauterized when i was a wee lad cause it would just start bleedin for no reason . Other than that No clue bro

[nutinbutdust]

Other than introducing my nose to someones fist , Its never been touched

I had My eyes did. worked great

I do barely remember having to have my nose cauterized when i was a wee lad cause it would just start bleedin for no reason . Other than that No clue bro

thanks vet, lol my memory must be going.

[pphilfran]

Other than introducing my nose to someones fist , Its never been touched

I had My eyes did. worked great

I do barely remember having to have my nose cauterized when i was a wee lad cause it would just start bleedin for no reason . Other than that No clue bro

Introduced you nose to someones fists....lol

[SoonerBorn]

I had all 3 done about a year ago. I wish I could tell you it will be easy, but I can tell you that you'll almost certainly appreciate the results. It probably took me 3 months to get to that point, though.

I guess each doctor does it differently, so your experience may be different than mine. My doctor (Vasan) inserted plastic tubes into my nose to help with the drainage - but I don't know that they really did. The tubes were always clogged, and you really can't blow your nose. Some doctors pack the nose, which I hear is worse. The tubes came out a week or two later. The doctor who took them out (not Vasan) showed them to me (they were clogged) and said that when he does the procedure he doesn't use tubes at all.

My doctor kept me in the hospital overnight because I have sleep apnea, and he was just being super cautious. I remember bleeding freely from the nose for a solid 24-48 hours after the surgery. That started letting up, but I had nose bleeds on and off for a little while. A few weeks after the surgery, once I thought I was past it, I had a big enough nose bleed come on suddenly that I almost went to the hospital.

I felt congested for quite a while, and the doctors in general seem to be anti-Afrin. Afrin helped some, but only for a while, anyway. I didn't sleep well at all for a few weeks, and my nose was pretty sore. I have young kids, and they seemed to get a message from somewhere that they were supposed to bop my nose frequently.

Once I got past it, though, I was amazed at how well I breath through my nose. I could never breath that well before, so I had to breath through my mouth. Unfortunately, it ultimately didn't help with my apnea, which has gotten worse. The doctor now wants to do a surgery to shave the back of my tongue, but honestly my experience with the septoplasty was so miserable that I can't bring myself to it. My wife had a surgery to expand the curtain at the back of her mouth to increase airflow, and her recovery was worse than my septoplasty. So, I'm sort of at a point where I need to deal with, lose weight, or commit to other surgeries that ultimately may or may not help.

I don't know if that's helpful, but I do know it offers a bleak forecast. My doctor really underprepared both me and my wife for our recoveries, so I'm just trying to be honest. Expect pain, keep lots of tissue on hand at all times, and budget in more sick leave than you planned. Sorry, but best wishes on a much speedier recovery than I had!

[soonersis]

WowSoonerBorn! From surgery to unpacking it was only 3 days for me. Minimal bleeding and just slight bruising under my eyes. No wonder you don't want to have any more surgeries.

[SoonerBorn]

WowSoonerBorn! From surgery to unpacking it was only 3 days for me. Minimal bleeding and just slight bruising under my eyes. No wonder you don't want to have any more surgeries.

Definitely a YMMV situation - you can google all kinds of stories out there about this. Some people have quick recoveries, others don't. I tend to err on the side of painting a negative picture. If you recover quickly, I'll gladly let you call me an alarmist. Like I said, my doctor lead me to believe it would be a quick recovery, then when it wasn't he said my results were "typical" for what he'd seen for this surgery.

[nutinbutdust]

Wow Soonerborn thanks for the info. I have been reading conflicting stories on the internet on recovery. My Dr said that I would have tubes in my nose, but not for drainage. He said that when they originally started using them at Mayo, they actually used drinking straws. I think my Dr is underplaying the severity and recovery time a little. I have a week off work, hopefully that will be enough. I too have sleep apnea. He told me I might have to stay overnight, but to bring my CPAP machine, and that I could go home if i could use it. My major problem is that my right side is always clogged, and when my allergies kick in, both are clogged, and I have no choice but to breathe through my mouth. In a way I feel a little lucky that I am in Minnesota, and the hospital I use is associated with the Mayo Clinic.

[sooneron]

Cocaine's a helluva a drug, just sayin'. :D

[StoopTroup]

Afrin....

It has its positive qualities but your nose can get hooked on it. It's why you are seeing neti pots and saline solutions become much more popular.

SB IMO would have been better off having the nose packed by the sound of her recovery. Not saying the tubes don't work but I don't have any idea what the percentages are of success in using the tubes. I'm pretty sure packing is still the best way to go.

Also...head wounds, especially nose bleeds seem terrible as there is always lots of blood. You just need to avoid panicking and keep the nurses informed when it seems to be increasing.

Prayers for a quick recovery.

[SoonerBorn]

SB IMO would have been better off having the nose packed by the sound of his recovery.

Fixed. :) And, maybe. Like I said, a different doctor removed the tubes and said when he does the surgery he doesn't put anything in except to support the support the septum, I guess.

The tubes they used on me actually looked like this:
http://droakleysmithrhinoplasty.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/2009-Sep-18-0081-300x200.jpg

I wasn't able to even use the CPAP for a while after the surgery. I was supposed to, mind you, but I couldn't - the full face mask put pressure on the nose and I didn't sleep at all. Plus, I was only breathing through my mouth at that point. I remember it improved dramatically once they removed the tubes, but then they did a follow up sleep study and decided to up the pressure, and that's not working out for me.

I bet a week off work is fine, actually, especially with a weekend in there. I just looked and I took 3 days of vacation (plus a weekend), and I was back at work. I was still very sore and congested, but I was able to operate.

[nutinbutdust]

Well had it done last thursday. Dang didnt know the doc was going to hit me in the nose with a bat... lol at least that is how it feels. I didnt get tubes in my nose, the doc said my nostrils were to small. He did say he put stints in to keep the nasal passage open. Getting those out tommorrow. Hoping i feel better after that.

[olevetonahill]

Well had it done last thursday. Dang didnt know the doc was going to hit me in the nose with a bat... lol at least that is how it feels. I didnt get tubes in my nose, the doc said my nostrils were to small. He did say he put stints in to keep the nasal passage open. Getting those out tommorrow. Hoping i feel better after that.

Good luck

[SoonerStormchaser]

Just make sure that they don't give you back your old nose...
http://cdn2.mamapop.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/princess-vespa-new-nose.jpeg