Turbinate reduction surgery turbinoplasty my experience

Im glad you had a good experience but I must say as good as it was, it was not nearly as easy as mine. I didnt have a throat tube ( the surgery only took a few minutes so I didnt need one) I had very little pain, tylenol took care of it and I didnt get packing ! I went home an hr after surgery. There was a very tiny bit of seeping blood for the first 24 hrs... There was no discharge afterward...and my nose was very clear by the 2nd day after surgery. I didnt need to do nasal rinses...no icepacks.. I must have been lucky to have such a GREAT ENT! I do have a lot of health issues and heal badly in all other situations but not this one. I hope everyone out there who needs a turbinate reduction finds a Dr as great as mine!

I had my bilateral turbinate reduction performed in an out patient surgery center, I was in and out within a few hrs. No packing, no heavy bleeding, pain was minimal. I am allergic to sedation meds so that was a bigger issue than the actual surgery. No restrictions on food after surgery. I couldnt eat or drink 8 hrs prior to surgery, I am sure your DR will advise you . Everyone heals differently and your procedure will probably be different too. Best of luck to you!

Here is hopeing wednesday will go as well for me

Hi, thank you so much for the details ! You have encouraged me have the operation and can t wait ! I will post the details afterwards !! thanks again !!!!

Hi.My 17 year old just had this done yesterday under general anesthesia...and she is miserable.....lots of pain....she is taking RX tylenol with codine...but she is soooo miserable and in pain......she also has the packing.....her teeth hurt....any help?

wow...good for you..my daughter is miserable in pain

I had my Septoplasty and Turbinate Reduction on Friday. It's now Sunday afternoon. When I first talked to my ENT about 5 years ago she said she only recommended surgery as a last resort as it was not much fun to go through. I had a deviated septum all my life but was paying more attention to it lately after I realized I had severe sleep apnea. I went to the sleep lab in December 2012 and the found that I stopped breathing 187 times in one night. I got my CPAP machine a few weeks ago (before the surgery) which I was happy about because I would get a chance to try it before and after surgery. My ENT was correct when said I would be fighting with the CPAP because of my obstruction. I found that I had to use more effort mostly exhaling as the machine helped me inhale. I had better luck with the nose pillows mask than the full nasal mask but I would often rip either one off around 3am. So The surgery... When I re-visited my E.N.T. around 7 months ago she said the obstruction was easy to fix. I reminded her what she told me last time and she said the surgery is now much easier, much safer and no packing. She said it is her favorite surgery to do because it helps people so much. She also said that again just before I went into the O.R. Just before surgery they gave me 2 Tylonol 3's to get my brain into 'pain reduction mode' There were about 6 people in the OR. My surgeon was not there yet. The Anesthesiologist said he was first going to put something in my IV to keep me from getting sick. He then put the General in and said it may hurt a bit. He asked me if it hurt and I said my forearm ached a bit. Then I remember him asking me how I felt, I said a bit dizzy, I remember starting to see stars a tiny bit and thats' all. I had planned to say 'Goodnight I love you' as a joke just before but didn't get to. I remember. The next thing I was in recovery (about 1 1/2 hr later). I knew exactly where I was right away and the first thing I realized was that I was breathing through my nose at least on the right side. I had no more nose pain than when your nose would get a bit crusty after a bad cold. My throat was a bit sore from the tube and my voice was a bit raspy from it. The 'Limo driver' then wheeled me into my room and I talked to him the whole way. My wife came into the room a bit later and the first thing my wife asked was if they did anything since I had no black eyes and no sign of surgery, not even bandages of any kind. They gave me a delotid for pain but I didn't really need it. I was bored to death after my left and wished I had brought my laptop. I stayed overnight at the hospital only because they wanted to monitor my oxygen level with my CPAP on but that didnt work out too well. I had to take it off because I was leaking some runny blood into the mask about 1 hour later and started getting too stuffed up to use it. I went home the next day at 2pm. My surgeon was on vacation. The replacement didn't show up an released my over the phone. So its 2 days later now. I have had no pain other than like you would have with a cold. The worst thing is that they tell you not to blow your nose for 2 weeks. I want to so bad. I did gently while stil at the hospital before they told me not to. It hurt a bit but then felt a bit better. I slept ok last night but because I was breathing through my mouth, my throat was dry and sure. I got up to eat and went back to be , this time I slept alost upright and did some gentle snorting (opposite of nose blowing) and coild feel some stufff going down my throat. I could then breath through my nose on one side and had a good sleep. I have need using saline nasal spray and decongestant spray. So so far so good. Peice of cake.

Thank you, Kat for reducing my fear and anxiety.
LeahNicole

I feel sorry to see your suffering of the packing and I shall do some more promotion of my way "holmiium laser assisted turbinate reduction" to help patients getting less discomfort ,pain and bleeding of this procedure especially when taking off nasal packing post op.

best from Chong---- ENT surgeon in Hong Kong.

It sounds like you had a septoplasty with turbinate reduction. The first cuts the deviated septum and the second basically trims the enlarged turbinates. he removal of the packing does not hurt a bit. There is brief suction at the very end but is not painful I think people are wimps or like to scare others. It is gross though. I had the two procedures done at the same time, along with a biopsy on my tongue and there wasn't any real pain. There was pressure from the packing and thenasal splints, but mostly the packing. This caused the skin to stretch quite a bit. One nurse told me I had the most packing she had ever seen! If you do not have splints, you will feel different as soon as the packing is removed, otherwise you will need to wait to notice the difference in breathing.

I'm getting this operation done myself soon and I have to admit I was incredibly worried about it, but reading this has completely put my mind at rest!! Thank you :)

Hey, i did a turbinate reduction last week thursday and my experience was similar. When i got the packing out i had very little bleeding, and apart from my throat being sore it was the only other thing that hurt. Its Day 7 post op for me and my nose is still draining blood and mucus, and at least twice a day i get these REALLY terrible sinus headaches. Some days i feel weak and dizzy, other days i feel great. My breathing is so much better. For the first time in my life im actually breathing through my nose and it feels GREAT! I recommend this procedure !

I just had this plus UPPP. Irrigating the nose has helped but this is very uncomfortable.

The UPPP makes me wonder if the ENT community is unaware of pain management. I have to force myself to swallow with pain levels of 8 or 9. This is senseless. Liquid Vicodin that burns the throat and nothing else is worthless.

 

have they not heard of dialulid or hydromorphone? I had both knees replaced at the same time and I had disc fusion in my lower back but never have I suffered ongoing pain at these levels. I would never consider this were I to have the option over. This is for the birds.

Thank god I've been looking everywhere for someone to mention clots, it's day 6 since surgery I use a saline rinse a few time a day! Little clots came out here and there , well since yesterday I've felt like there is something stuck in nasal passage on left side, today I woke and still felt like that but my face hurt like the flu on that side I used the saline squeeze in morning nothing just a tad on right side well dinner time I did again and out the right nostril a huge clot but I could swear something was stuck in left so few hours later did a rinse again and the water usually goes up one nostril out the other , while I had it up right the left kept blocking so I kept trying gently pushing well finally a ginormous clot and had a piece of white in it which I'm sure was cardlidge I'm sure that's what I was feeling! Anyways since then I feel way better except now a headache and ear hurts but I'm sure that's from finally relieving my sinus of that annoying blockage! I'm sorry for the gross details ! I will say as far as pain after it was rough right after surgery ,my teeth and roof of mouth killed I'm thinking from the tube down throat, after coming home having a nap I was fine I've needed no pain meds except day of before nap I took a Motrin! So other then pain right after and huge blockage it has not been bad at all! Also I had no stints up nose or packing!

Hi Katz
It was great to read your post. I'm having surgery in a week or so and feel nervous. I'm worried about the feeling of not breathing through your nose and only your mouth after surgery and the packing. Reading your experience makes me feel a lot better.
Thanks Anne