Bad sinus pressure after Septoplasty & turbinate reduction

[dmdewar79]

  I just had a Septoplasty & turbinate reduction surgery on 02/11/08, I’m still in some pain and sleeping has been hell, except for last night I did get some sleep. I got my stints pulled out yesterday and I am able to breath good thru one nostril in & out but the other one I can only breath in not out. My doctor said I could blow my nose just not hard. So their is the problem I cant clear out my left nostril except for sniffing and I am getting a lot of sinus pressure (is that normal and will it go away) which makes sleeping very hard.  I can handle a stuffy nose as long as there is no sinus pressure and I don’t want to take pseudo ephedrine at night cause it will keep me up. Any suggestions on my situation would be appreciated. My doctor is not in on the weekend that is why I didn’t ask him. Thanks

[asiv]

Hi there,im interested in how you progress as im having this surgery at the end of the month.I hope you get some help on this forum and i hope you have a speedy recovery.Pls keep us updated.

[vaccaro]

Hi,
This is the same surgery I am suppose to have in a couple weeks as well.  I am wondering if you were swollen on both sides of the nose before the surgery or just one.  I have a mild deviation and my left turbinate  is swollen.  The ENT said that I have more room due to the deviation on the right side of my nsoe and this is why I am not blocked on that side. However, when he does the septo, he has to also do turbinate surgery on that side b/c of moving the septum back to the middle of my nose. He also said he would have to fracture my bone in the inferior turbinates and maybe even the middle turbinate.  I was wondering if you had surgery on just the inferior turbinate or also the middle one too and how they did yours.  My middle turbinate appears swollen also.  I can feel swelling up high on my nose (near the bridge). When I lye down at night I have to lay on my right side, this helps w/trying to keep the swelling at a minimum on the left side of my nose so I can sleep (what little I get most of the time). I can feel my turbinate fill up and sometimes even hear it.  Did you ever experience this feeling?  I have heard good and bad things about this surgery...I know it sounds scary and I am scared...Hopefully this will be the answer we have all been looking for - I hope. I know how aggravating this is.  I have been going thru this since 2005. In April 2006 I had the coblation procedure done (quick in-office radiofrequency where they take out swollen tissue in inferior turbinates).  I did fine for 19 months utnil I caught a cold this past Thanksgiving.   Antibiotics nor prednisone helps for very long. I am on Nasacort and I don't think this helps either. This is why I have decided to do the surgery. I know this is long winded but it seems I know no one else who has this crazy problem.  I look forward to hearing back from you about your surgery...THANKS!

[vaccaro]

I forgot to tell you one thing.  Sometimes when I get really swollen and stuffed up to the point I cannot breathe, I use Mucinex.  This helps to loosen any mucous  (including in your nose) and it really helps me.  you could try it but you might ask your doctor first.

[vaccaro]

Hi,
Just wanting to know how you are doing thus far????  Hopefully you are doing better...I am due to have this surgery soon too, let us know how you are.  Much Thanks!

[brokenbytears]

Hello guys!
I am a 17 year old lad who had this operation last Saturday (1st March) and to be fair I wish I had never had bothered, the first night after was pretty bad, which was expected then the day after things just started going down hill, I have now got an infection and I am on Antibiotics 4 a day, I am suffering from sickness, ear/head ache, throat very raw everything just is so bad! Very swollen nose and stuffed up which is expected for a few weeks, i'm in a lot of pain, thinking of going back into hospital.. i'll let you know how it goes. x

[kmac221]

I had a septoplasty and turbinate reduction on Feb. 14th, 2008.  I am a 33 year old male and always had problems with sinus infections, poor sleep, difficulty breathing, etc.  I finally saw an ENT that recommended the procedures mentioned above because over a very deviated septum and a enlarged turbinate.  I had the same sentiments as brokenbytears a few days after the procedure.  The third and fourth days after the surgery were pretty rough.  The I had a Lortab prescription for the pain that did the trick for me.  The sore throat from the breathing tube put me on a diet of Slim Fast and room temperature chicken broth.  Ask your doc for a Rx of "Magic Mouthwash."  You gargle and swallow a few table spoons of this stuff and your throat will feel remarkably better.  Why they don't send you home from the hospital with this is beyond me.  I had to call my doc and complain first before I got the script.  

My biggest complaint was resisting the urge to blow my nose the first week after surgery.  The congestion from all of the debris/dried blood and mucous is terribly uncomfortable.  My stents were removed the very next day after my surgery.  I had a follow up appt. 10 days later.  At that appointment, my doc told me to use a nasal irrigation bottle (Neil Med...found in any drug store) twice a day.  It sounds bad but that thing was great...8 oz's of warm saline water shot up both notrils.  It feels very strange, it took me a couple of times to get used to it but it did wonders breaking up the congestion and clearing my sinuses.  The carnage that comes out of your nose is not for a weak stomach!  

It's been just over three weeks since my surgery.  My pain subsided after about 7-10 days.  I still have a slight feeling of sinus pressure, but even then, I can breathe better through my nose.  I'm happy I had the procedure.    

[lisa593]

I had a turbunate reduction and tonsillectomy 8 weeks ago.  My tonsillectomy cleared up.  But, I am struggling with the turbunate reduction. I have dryness, burning, and feeling of the nose being too open.  Is there any support in Colorado?

[amerka]

This was my first surgery. I had a septo plasty and turbante reduction on april 16th and it is now march 16th and i had another doc appt today, i still am having some crusting up in my nose and past out in the doc office from him digging around in my nose... im still in alot pain from all of it...
right after the surgery it wasnt to bad the one thing i did remember was the pain from the tube in my throat, and getting sick from the sleepy meds....
the next day i went to get the packing taking out that was so uncomfortable!!! Oh and im constantly grossing everyone out when the nasty things come out of my nose.... i cant help it...LOL.... i have had an ear infection from this whole thing as well....
To be totally honest i wish i would have never done this... maybe it was my doctor... he isnt very people friendly, and acts like he doesnt care... he didnt even tell me i had stitches in my nose...

[danZzz]

sniffing inwards hard will hurt your sinuses..
soz, i tryed my best 2 help lol

[smitherines]

I had the septoplasty, turbination, endocopic sinus surgery on 05/15/08.  The worse days so far has been Friday evening and Saturday evening into Sunday night. I started taking, sunday evening, tylenol in between my lortabs.  Boy did that make a difference.  My throat is still raw from the tube.  Sometimes my whole head aches from the surgery.  But I do feel better in my sinus cavities.  At this point I would defintely do it again.  I don't have the pressure around my eyes that I had before the surgery.  I go Wednesday and get my stents out on Wednesday. I hear that is rough.  Keep you posted on how that goes.

[lisalisa173]

I had Septoplasty & turbinate reduction last week 1125/08 . I have some Sinus pressure but over all it’s not to bad. I only needed pain med for 2 days. I was told not to bend over, lift things ect ect.. I normally listen to about half of what people let me to do lol.. When I started to clean the house and decorate for Christmas my face started to throb a little so I stopped. It’s only been 5 days since my operation . I got up this morning and wanted to go to work but thought it best to rest today.
I am hoping this will stop me from getting sick as much since my past sinus infections started to travel to my lungs which started to cause bigger problems for me.
My brother has a Septoplasty & turbinate reduction in the summer and has not has a infection since… I am keeping my finger crossed for the same results

[Megs09]

I had an inferior turbinate reduction (somnoplasty) as well as functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) in my right nostril. I'm now 4 days post surgery. The first evening there was burning from my upper nose, behind the eyes, to back past my temples. The hydrocodone fixed this 100 percent. The next day, due to swallowing all night and a very dry mouth from sleeping with my mouth open, and I supposed the tube down my throat during surgery, I began with a sore throat. Now 4 days past, the throat is still sore, I find most foods, even a lot of mushy foods, burn going down.  I'd recommend luke warm chicken soup, this seems ok. Today however, the left nostril began to clear, and the flow of air hitting the back of my nose burns too. The right nostril is still completely clogged. Really, the pain is very minimal, it's more like discomfort. The drainage has been extremely small. Very small amounts of blood, usually just a light pink color on the gauze I keep under my nose. No stints, the packing was taken out an hour after surgery. I was told I can walk, not bend. The few times I've bent down, I get a throbbing in my head, and will immediately take it easy. The swelling was extremely minimal for the first two days and just under the nose. For now, I take half a hydrocodone for the discomfort every 6 hours, amoxicillin to fight infection, and use a nasal saline wash 5 times a day. I'd say the most annoying part is sleeping with my mouth open. I have a checkup with the doctor one week post surgery. I hope this is helpful!

[theshopper]

It has been 2 1/2 weeks since my septoplasty, and balloon sinuplasty.  I was told I wouldn't need stints and I also had the dissovable stitches.  Has anyone had any problems with eye blurriness and slight sinus headache/pressure?  I have to say, I can breathe alot better...and am glad I had the procedures done.

[mslauralicious]

They have come a long way in reducing the pain and swelling that comes with Septoplasty.  No longer do they use packing ,which was what I always heard was the worse part of recovery.  They use dissolveable stitches and although you're not allowed to blow your nose for 2 weeks, the saline solution NeilMed takes care of cleaning all the yuck that accummulates inside the nose.  The most pain I exeperienced was none dealing with my nose.  It was the severe sore throat that drove me insane.  It's been 4 days and the throat is still severe.  I read above about asking the doctor to prescribe "Magic Mouthwash"  I'm going to see if I can get that and I'll let you know if it works.   When asking off for work you definetely should take 4 days off and use ice packs every 30  min along with sleeping upright with pillows for the first few days.  I could tell a difference in my breathing and how much better it was the day of surgery.  The 2nd and 3rd day are a bit more stuffy.  

[RecoveryDay]

I just had my septoplasty and turbinectomy (both sides) yesterday.  I would say that I have not yet experienced anything that I would describe as pain.  I do have stents in both nostrils which are uncomfortable, and I can only imagine will become more and more uncomfortable as time goes on.  I have to wait a week to get them out due to the nature of my surgery.  I am a bit scared of having the stents removed.  I guess I'm mostly afraid of a bad nose bleed and that they will stick or hurt when they come out.  Anybody else had stents removed after a week?  

[KenRyan]

theshopper said "Has anyone had any problems with eye blurriness and slight sinus headache/pressure?  I have to say, I can breathe alot better...and am glad I had the procedures done."

Yes!  It's 14 days since my septoplasty w/turb red. and I'm experiencing blurriness with sinus pressure and headache as well.  I didn't think it would still be happening after 2 weeks.  I'm also having pulsating tinnitus in my ears.  Has anyone else had that?

[liam695]

Definetely not hesitate to see a doctor about that. The operation should not affect the eyes. Perhaps the bluryness may be the painkillersm but still see a doctor.
I am 7.5 weeks post-op and my sinus is as bad as its ever been. Can barely breath, and have quite alot of sinus pressure.

[Don473]

I had this surgery a week ago, and I'm feeling all right. My splints were removed Monday and I was able to breath through both nostrils for the first time ever, it seems. When the doctor took them out, I sucked in so much air I got dizzy and the doctor fainted from lack of oxygen. Just kidding. I still have a bit of a sore throat and I too had a bit of visual blurriness for a few days. I also had trouble being able to urinate for 5 hours after the surgery. I drank lots of water with lemon juice and that helped.  I am very glad I had this done. I no longer wake up with a horribly dry mouth because I don't breath through my mouth almost exclusively at night.

[Don473]

When I said "I had this surgery" I meant Septoplasty. I had nothing else done at the time.

[RecoveryDay]

I am two weeks post op now after having septoplasty and bilateral turbinectomy.  The stents were the only thing that I would describe as uncomfortable and it was such a relief to have them removed last week.  It didn't hurt at all to have them removed, as I had feared (note my earlier post).  The doc had to snip one stitch in each nostril that was holding them in, but that didn't hurt either.  I was afraid that they would stick to my nose, but they didn't in the slightest.  I was also afraid of bleeding - it never happened.  There was quite a bit of "snot" that came out though, but he had given me a kleenex so I could immediately wipe that away.  He also allowed me to gently blow my nose right afterward, and that was a nice relief as well. I still have not had any pain from this procedure, but once in a while when my glasses get a little heavy on my nose, I feel little pin ***** sensations in the tip of nose.  But that goes away as soon as I push my glasses up again.  My doc gave me steroid nasal spray because I had an additional problem in that my nasal tissues had fused together,completely blocking my airway.  He wants me to use that every day to keep it from closing up again.  He also gave me a kit for nasal rinsing, and I have been doing that every day.  It feels really good to clean out my sinuses that way.  I went out and bought the little packets that go with the squeeze bottle. Right now, my nasal passages feel great and I'm so glad I had this procedure done.  I would like to add that I did get a recommendation from another person for this doctor.  

[hatemysinuses]

I am here looking for any advice and any discussion on how people have done after septoplasty. I had a septoplasty and turbinate reduction back in March of 2009.  

The first few weeks post-op were pretty bad, but then things "seemed" to slowly get better.  I would say I had a good 3 weeks where my nose seemed somewhat normal, and that was about 8 weeks post-surgery. Then, in June/July after my surgery in March, things started going downhill. I had to blow my nose CONSTANTLY, and I mean, CONSTANTLY.  I would try to sleep, but wake up every 30 minutes because my pillow was soaking wet and cold where liquid had come out of my nose.  I was going through about 3 boxes of kleenex every 24 hours.  I then completely lost my sense of smell. I started sneezing about 20-30 times a day. This went on until October, at which time I finally went back to the ENT.  Apparently, I had a horrible sinus infection.  I never had one in my life, so I didn't know that was what was going on, I just thought it was 'fall-out' from the surgery, as I had been told it could take 6 months to a year to feel fully better (my surgery had been to repair a deviated septum, but up until the summer after the surgery, I had never had a sinus infection in my life).  I was ecstatic, thinking that I finally had an answer, and that things would return to normal, how they were before I first had problems and was diagnosed w/ a deviated septum.

Short story long, the doctor put me on prednisone and antibiotics.  While I was on the prednisone, I could breathe, my nose stopped running so much, but still ran some, and I could finally smell again.  But, once I went off the prednisone, it came right back........the stuffiness and runniness, the ear-popping, the sneezing, the sinus pressure, the post-nasal drip.  I went back to him, he took another CT scan, which showed some of the infection was still there.  I did another bout of prednisone and antibiotics, same story.........it came back.  I went back again, he did another bout of prednisone w/o even doing a CT scan, and, yet again, it was fine while on prednisone, then once I went off, it's right back to the same problem:  sinus pain, pressure, congestion, runny nose (sometimes if I get up off the couch, once I get to the kitchen, I have 'streams' of liquid coming out of both nostrils.........I have to take a tissue with me EVERYWHERE!!!), sneezing, and NO sense of smell.  The weird thing is, if I blow my nose, then breathe in, at that moment ONLY, I can smell.  After that, though, it's gone again.  

I've had allergy testing, and everything came back negative.

I can't take much more of this.  I think that the septoplasty has ruined my nose. Sure, I can breathe through my nose now, but what's the point, when I can only breathe through my nose and not get 100% air flow (sometimes I feel dizzy and like I'm not getting enough oxygen through my nose--like it's not 100% open, although my ENT says after the surgery he could drive a train through my nostrils, they're so open), and I have all of these other problems on top of it, that I never had before.  

I'm wondering if anyone else has had similar experiences after septoplasty.  I now wish I had NEVER had this surgery.  Granted, I couldn't breathe through one side of my nose before, but at least then, I could smell, and I didn't have to use 3 boxes of tissues a day, and I didn't sneeze all the time, and my ears didn't pop, and I didn't have pain and pressure.  Seems now, I can breathe through my nose most of the time, but I have more problems that are different, that I never had before, so what was the point?

I've heard of non-allergic rhinitis, and am worried that I somehow developed that after the septoplasty. Is that possible?  Has anyone else had these same problems after surgery?  Any help you can give me would be much appreciated. I'm at my wit's end about this.

[KikiPopoki1]

I am having the EXACT same issues and symptoms as you.  I am now just one month post-op from septoplasty and turbinate reduction, and today I feel miserable!  I sneeze somewhere between 10 and 20 times a day (which I never did prior to my surgery), I feel perpetually stuffed up, with intense sinus pressure, (although my ENT surgeon ALSO said that he could drive an SUV through my sinuses) headaches and swelling under and around my eyes, from what feels like a sinus infection or allergy attack.  My ears have also been perpetually clogged for the past 3 days and so I'm walking around tall day, trying to unplug them.  And today and yesterday, my right side is blocked, from what I believe is swelling...although I have idea from what.

Like you, I had a comprehensive allergy testing done and the results came back NEGATIVE!!  That just can't be, as I had my allergies tested when I was a teenager (I'm now 50) and I had severe allergies to molds, dust mites, and a couple of tree pollens.  How can they simply disappear?!?

Yes, I can hear my nasally voice when I speak, which means I have no blockage, but why do I feel nearly worse than prior to my surgery?

Frustrated and concerned...

Julia

[Gaff52]

Hi , I've been having problems with my sinus for years now but only when flying and for a numbers of days after. Somtimes I would even have bleeding that would last a few day's. I would also have problems the day after drinking alcohol ie bad sinus headeache and no not a hangover I can tell the difference :) Apart from these two situations I would never have problems. Anyway Went to my ENT and got checked. They done a CT scan and it showed that I had a deviated septum the same as you so I got the septoplasty done 18 months ago now with the hope that this would solve my pain while flying and after drinking. However I'm sad to say I'm now worse. On my first flight after the Op the pressure pain was unreal and the bleeding was still there, I now have sinus pressure pain reguarlay without drinking or flying so I went back to the ENT and they done another scan. The results came back and they say  everything looks fine and the Op was a success. I can tell you for sure that the Op does not feel like a sucess. The pressure pain is driving me mad at times and I don't want to scare anyone but if I could turn back time I would not have this Op done again. I am now at the stage that flying is on longer an option for me and I'm reguarly taking pain killers to contol the pain.

I pretty much gave up alcohol as the pain the next day is just not worth it as alcohol will swell your sinus and increase pressure pain.

I hope you and I find a soulation one day to our problem. But if the soulaton turns out to be another OP.... I think I would stick to the pain i've currently got cause I don't think I could risk it getting any worse and the doctors telling me it was another success..

Best of luck

Regards,

[unreal23]

Hi all, just wanted to add my experience to this long list.  I just had a Septoplasty (to repair deviated septum) and turbinate reduction done about a week ago, January 21st, 2010.  You may not want to read my dissertation, so....the surgery and recovery process, post-op of splint removal has been nearly pain free with no complications in my case (cross my fingers).  Some advice if you get this done:  Have on hand a box of Q-tips to clean out your nose, some nasal saline spray, and plenty of straws to drink water from.  To give you a little background, the doctor diagnosed me with a severly deviated septum, swollen turbinates but no sinus issues whatsoever.  The MAIN reason I had this done was simply to sleep better - I was feeling lethargic and tired all day despite sleeping 7 or 8 hours a night.  Secondary reasons were constantly stuffy nose and a bit of snoring.  

Day 1:  I wake up from anesthesia feeling disoriented and groggy but otherwise in only mild discomfort.  I lied just in case and they fed me a hydrocodone :)  They taped a white mustache pseudo bandage over my upperlip to absorb the bloody drainage.  There was not a river of blood, but just enough to slowly soak the little bandage.  Long story short, I was driven home and headed straight to the coach and TV.   I was starving at this point and immediately had a family member cook up a pot of mac and cheese.  The only unpleasant symptoms at the end of this day was slight sore throat, heavy nasal congestion and steady bleeding.  Not bad at all....no nausea, no stabbing nasal pains, no headache.  Make sure to clean your nose with moist q-tips to prevent crusting!

Day 2-3 :  Tired as hell from a horrendous night of sleep because of my congested nose.  The splints make nose breathing nearly impossible and I am forced to breathe through my mouth.  This makes my mouth dry and I am sipping water constantly.  Appetite is a bit down but not too bad.  Mainly, I am very  very tired and spend much of the day sleeping, or laying down.  The more time you spend standing up, the mose your nose will bleed.  My nose only bled when my nose was tilting forward.  Still no pain, headaches etc.  Remember to clean your nose, this will help you so much when the splints are removed

Day 4:  Still tired as hell from poor nights of sleep,  For much of the day, I am still weak, heavily congested and slight bleeding when I strike the wrong pose.  Slight headache for a few hours which is promptly relieved by taking tylenol.  However, in the evening, I start feeling better in terms of energy.  I walk around the house feeling supremely congested and bored.  

Day 5:  Still tired from lack of quality sleep.  Today is splint removal which I am dreading.  At the same time, I cannot wait to get the damn annoying things out of my nose.  I go so far as to take my first hydrocodone + 2 tylenols before the appointment.  Like an idiot, I proceed to read horror stories of other people's splint removal.   So, in short, the process of pulling out the stiches and taking out the splints did not hurt at all.  I, however, nearly passed out from imagining the pain.  I was VERY thankful that my nose was fairly clear of dried crud to make splint removal a breeze.  My nose feels great at this point and I head home in high spirits.  The doctor warns of swelling over next few days.

Day 6:  No pain, no tiredness, no drainage.  I just feel like I have some congestion due to the swelling.  This should subside within a few days according to the doctor.      

Granted, my experience seems rather ideal, but finding a GOOD doctor to perform this surgery and following post-op instructions to the letter also goes a long way towards healthy recovery.  For example, my doctor has been performing septoplasty for 20 years amd was recommended to me by a friend.  

[schnoz4314]

am 8 weeks post septoplasty and can finally breathe thru both nostrils but obviously have a low grade infection in the sinus above my previously blocked nostril. am going to start antibiotic regimen, as i never had such thick purilent mucus before. the good news, however is that when i now blow my nose, something finally comes out!