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I have had a problem for a few years with congestion in one side of my sinuses. (It started on a trip to China, but it was a year before Covid, and it started on the plane over) Now I am booked in for "functional endoscopic sinus surgery". I've done the obligatory googling, but I wonder if anyone has more relevant information and experience - like how long will I have to stay off he bike?
You'll be fine so long as you don't go out without a helmet on.
I haven't.
Son had a massive polyp up his nose. Had some fun endoscopic action which identified it. Went in for surgery under general when he was about 15 years old. Following surgery he had to carry out a nasal douche with cooled boiled salted water. Think he had to do this for about 3-4 weeks.
For reference the polyp was the size of a squash ball, so quite impressive.
He was off school for a few days and I think he'd completely recovered by about 3 weeks and was back to normal.
I have,but it was combined with realignment of my septum. I had some crazy debilitating head aches for a week, but I guess a hammer and chisel up your nose will do that 🤣
That was maybe 25 years ago, so I assume things have moved on a bit, and something which is more just cleaning them out wouldn't be so bad?
@longdog I also will have septum realignment. One of the symptoms just now is headaches, so I was hoping for less, not more 🙁
Well long term it has definitely helped, but not a total cure for me. I still dread if I get a cold and it goes to my sinuses, but day to day I have much less issue and my rhinitis is not as bad as it used to be. My septum is still not totally right, but no way am I going back 🤣
It really wasn't any fun the first week after surgery, but after that was fine.
Yes I have; to remove scar tissue & septum realignment. I was back on my bike at steady commute level within 10 days.
I wish I hadn’t bothered now as the scar tissue from the op seem to close my nozzles more than the previous scarring. Also my nose runs in uncontrollably when it’s cold, which it never did prior to the operation.
No, but I probably should. My sinuses are sodded. I don't think my ENT system ever fully recovered from a near-fatal bout of tonsillitis when I was a kid.
he had to carry out a nasal douche
I used to work with one of those.
Just checking in for interest - I have a deviated septum which seems to be causing me more grief the older I get so this may be in my future....
I had my septum realigned when I was 16. I'm 48 now. I seem to remember blood-soaked bungs up my nostrils while it all healed. Looks ok from the outside but the inside is still v wonky. I could definitely breathe better through my nose afterward.
Yes, about 20 years ago. Iirc 3 weeks off work due to infection risk or something? Plus a good while with sanitary products shoved up my nostrils, and rinsed with saline spray.
Get yourself many films to watch/entertainment, and you'll be grand.
Pretty sure I found breathing better afterwards!
IIRC, FESS is usually a day case if that helps.
As a lowly anaesthetist I’ve no idea what the length of recovery is after that.
“As a lowly anaesthetist“
I don’t think that the one keeping me oblivious of pain is “lowly” 🙂
I've had it more than once. Last time was home by lunchtime, but I've also stayed overnight (they started late). Felt OK after a few days. No bike until follow up a couple of weeks later.
Last time it was some sort of foam dissolving dressing so nothing excessive stuffed up there, which is more pleasant, but still not great.
My partner has terrible trouble with her sinuses. She has polyps up there so I believe and seemingly randomly anything can set her off for a night of terrible blocked nose without being blocked and sneezing etc.
She has a steroid spray but tries to avoid using it too much.
It seems like often even tiny amounts of alcohol can set it off but then it'll set off just randomly. Really a shame for her as she drinks so little anyway and now feels she can't even enjoy a little glass of wine at all.
Is this sort of surgery likely to address that kind of issue?
I believe polyps can return, potentially worse?
Thanks for making this thread, I'm waiting to find out a surgery date for fixing my deviated septum and some sort of sinus surgery at the same time. Not looking forward to the recovery which looks a bit rough but I can't wait to be able to breathe properly!
Kayak - i too have terrible sinuses. she needs to work out what wines make her sneeze and avoid those. i have the same issue with beer. some are terrible. anything yeasty and i`m sneezing like mad. cheap wine also.
i`m on piriton (or similar anti-histamine) from now till july otherwise i cant concentrate as my sinuses are going mental. plus side is i can drink other beer!
Steroid sprays are no good for me and dont seem to actually do anything. its an allergy thing which is an arse.
i`m toying with teh idea of starting a coke habit to cauterise my sinuses.
Just got myself a Neti Pot to try and give my sinuses a rinse and hope it clears them out a bit. My nose does feel a bit blocked but nothing moves when I blow into a hankie.
I'm hoping the rinsing starts to help a bit (as I'm sure once a bit more cleared I won't snore so much).
Just got myself a Neti Pot
I can heartily recommend this. I was pestered into getting one by a friend, I dismissed it as quackery bollocks and only bought it in the end to shut her up but as it turns out it's brilliant.
Obviously it's not going to cure anything, but when you've got buggered sinuses to start with and a rotten cold on top of that, even temporary relief from a clagged-up throat and the feeling that someone's wedged a pool ball up your left nostril is an absolute godsend.
I have a gradually worsen sinus blockage for many years (more than 20 years) but I just bear with it. But since I started getting hay fever (never had that before until about 15 years ago) the sinus blockage becomes rather severe. I have dry sinus blockage as far as I know.
If I sleep flat on my my back on the bed my sinus blockage will start after about 10 minus on both nostrils. Then I have to turn my head to one side to relieve the pressure and to breathe with one nostril. However, that too was getting difficult at time so need to breathe through the mouth. About 6 -7 months ago, out of a sudden my sinus blockage got so bad they were blocked for nearly two weeks like a slow suffocation. Went to see my GP only for her to prescribe me with anti-inflammation droplet that worsen it to the point they felt like permanent blockage. When it became totally unbearable, I dialed 111 and went to see the emergency doctor. He gave me some antibiotic (Amoxicillin) and my sinus slowly returned to the normal usual blockage. I could breath like "usual". after that but still not totally sorted.
Went to see the ENT consultant after 6 months wait and he put a scope to check my sinus (with a monitor in front of me) but could not find any problem such as polyps or structural problem but the wall of the nostrils inside was rather swollen.
Then he asked if I had some allergy which I promptly explained and his conclusion was that I must be allergic to something I did't know apart from pollen. Then I realised that I had some "itchy throat" after consuming some cherries (never had that before) and explained to him about that too.
I am now booked for full allergy test in June (need to stop taking any medication for few days (need to double check on that but I don't take medication at all))
Before I left He gave me the NeilMed Original Sinus Rinse Kit with 2 Premixed Sachets to rinse my sinus (I have been using Sterimar etc for a while now, doesn't do much to be honest) and anti-inflammation Mometasone Furoate Nasal Spray, Suspension (50 MG/dose).
His advice to me was to avoid surgery if possible and recommended the Nasal Spray to reduce inflammation (a bit like using asthma spray where I have to use it permanently).
His views on my sinus blockage is not related to the structure or the polyps condition. Therefore, surgery might incur risk of losing my taste/smell or the problem will return or not necessary. Hence, the nasal spray and allergy test.
Having used the nasal spray for few times now I have yet to experience major improvement but I am still using the spray.
Searching online, I also found out that sinus blockage can sometime cause by acid reflux or excessive acid in our body but I am not so sure about that since the last time I had a heartburn was many months ago.
Now I just want to find out the actual allergy I have apart from the obvious pollen.
I had FESS surgery for a totally blocked left maxillary sinus (the one on your cheek). The blockage was caused by a back tooth that had part of a root inside the sinus cavity, this then caused an infection that filled the cavity.
Treatment started off with a camera up my hooter (nothing to worry about) and then steroids, which just made me feel worse. Finally I had an op (FESS) to clear everything out.
The operation was a day visit and consisted of a general, then the surgeon drained and washed out my sinus. I woke up from the anesthetic, completely off my face thanks, apparently, to the coke they shove up your nose to constrict the bleeding and swelling. I was very lucky and hardly bled after the op and was pretty much back to normal within 48 hours. Virtually no pain and no bleeding.
My best advice would be to find a good consultant, who you can trust and who knows what they are talking about. Make sure you get a good CT scan and don't be fobbed off with antibiotics.
Good luck with it.
Not a personal dig, but I love when people say 'find a good consultant' as if most of us have any choice in the matter, never mind the wait to see one, any one 🤣
I have a number of health issues and getting any consultant seems like a life mission. Currently waited 10 months to get to see a new one (as I've moved location and so health boards), then 3 months for a MRI, it's now two months since the MRI and I've been told atleast another 2 months before I see him for the results, and then pressumbly another few months before I can get the injections I was getting, or suggested op. So it's going to be nearly 2 years since I said please can I see a consultant to get my steroid injections in my wrists like I was doing once or twice a year before I moved, though what I'd prefer at this point is the juicy op suggested (suave kapanji proceedure) to stop this particular NHS merrie-go-round.
Sorry, mini rant over, #triggered 😜
According to this article 70% of people have a deviated Septum, although few people have a problem with it. I had no idea that it was the norm, unless a couple of millimetres is considered a deviation - no one is totally symmetrical.
Raj explains that during the nasal cycle, erectile tissue in the nose fills up with blood and blocks the non-dominant nostril causing what he calls “a nose boner”...!
Brings a whole new meaning to the term "**** knows".
A guy I worked with had routine sinus surgery, they overpacked him after the surgery and damaged his optic nerve and went blind in one eye because of it. He was unable to carry on in his current role because of it so lost his job. Not sure how his negligence claim went.
A guy I worked with had routine sinus surgery, they overpacked him after the surgery and damaged his optic nerve and went blind in one eye because of it. He was unable to carry on in his current role because of it so lost his job. Not sure how his negligence claim went.
My appointment is on Monday. Wishing I'd never asked - I was hoping for reassurance !!
Just insist that they don't overpack post-op.
Although it must take some doing to stuff so much gauze up a nostril that it damages an optic nerve. You would have thought that someone would have said "that's probably enough" long before someone's head was stuffed with that much gauze.
As above, they used dissolving foam dressing last time I had it, so no packing.
Well, just to round out my story - had the op on Monday, no problems with my nose, they cleared out a lot of gunk and a polyp.
The main drama was that I couldn't go home cos I couldn't pee - weird feeling of being desperate to piss but nothing coming, so catheter required. What I learned was a) it's as uncomfortable as it looks, b) gentleman's relaxation is not advised c) my body creates a massive amount of pee. Luckily when it was removed waterworks were restarted. Most worrying was hearing the voice of tj in my head during this entertainment. Now back home and squirting NeilMed stuff - recommended by Cougar and consultant - up my nostrils.
Thanks for your anecdotes and info!!
Most worrying was hearing the voice of tj in my head during this entertainment.
I'm not sure why this would be, I've heard @tj accused of being a lot of things but "a pain where a catheter is inserted" isn't one of them