TL/DR - broke nose several times over the years - never fixed/set - problems ever since - need surgery - cool CT scans below / UPDATE Surgery OVERtomorrow morning - I will update the thread as I can...

24 years or so ago my nose was broken pretty badly, I never went to the doctor to get it set and I had two more breaks a few years later. I have always had problems breathing through my nose, usually only being able to breathe through one nostril or the other. I snore so I use the Breathe Right Strips - which when you pull the packaging apart it 'glows' in the dark - and they don't help much. I have recurring sinus infections, coughing, hacking and sneezing out great gobs of green/yellow/brown slime. OTC meds don't help, well Afrin does but the rebound shit fucked me up for a few weeks. Scripted meds like nasonex doesn't do much either.

I finally had enough so I went to the Ear, Nose, Throat shop. They looked with a scope and said, "yep deviated septum and inflamed turbinates. You are a good surgical candidate. Go get a CT scan and come back"

Went and had the CT and saw the doctor this afternoon. It doesn't take a rocket surgeon to see that it is a little jacked up. See the pics below. She says they can straighten my septum, reduce the turbinates, and maybe open a 'window' into my right sinus. The would use interior splints and possibly dissolving packing. I learned what turbinates are...

I want to go ahead and get the surgery but she says I would need to be out of work for a week due to congestion, pain, pain meds, and generally feeling like ass. I work in an office setting and I don't think that I would need to be out for a week. I was back at it 4 days after a double hernia and 3 days after the vasectomy.

The thing is I am supposed to be interviewing for a significant promotion in a week or so and I hate to have to throw out that I need a week off... I can manage a Thursday/Friday and the weekend... - Didn't get the promotion

She gave me Dymista to see if that would get me through a few weeks of what has become misery. Didn't work at all

SO... those of you that have had similar surgery - what am I really looking at as far as recovery? What can I expect??

I really want to get this put behind me.

PICS
Click To View Spoiler
UPDATE -

ETA: Surgery is on for 11AM tomorrow. I have to be there at 930AM and was told to expect to  be there a total of 5-6 hours. The surgery is supposed to last 1.5 hours. I am getting the septoplasty, turbinate reduction, and they are going to open a hole into my right cheek sinus as well as fix some other structural issues.

I have had a headache for 2 weeks or so and went to urgent care when just under my right eye got swollen for no reason - they said it was most likely a sinus infection. Been on antibiotics since then. I went back Tuesday because the headache was getting worse - they gave me Flexeril and told me to take tylenol and sudafed for the sinus and the Flexeril for tension headache.

I have a feeling that I am not going to be a happy camper tomorrow afternoon but I hope it will correct a lot if issues.

UPDATE
Before


After


The top pic is the bone spur that the doc said was really bad and goes further back in the pic. The bottom pic is after the 'fixed' it - slightly graphic
Click To View Spoiler

Here is the 'window' into the right sinus. The doc said they took a lot if debris out. Slightly graphic
Click To View Spoiler

Your shit looks worse than mine.  I was ready to get the surgery and then I watched one on youtube.



I lost my nerve.

What video...















Please don't post it....

Mine weren't quite that bad. After the surgery I could actually smell things for a change and breathe through my nose all the time except for on occasion. Plus no more sinus headaches.



ETA: The worst of it was sleeping sitting up for a week. Liquid vicodin made it all good though.

Dude it looks like you snorted Jimi Hendrix.

Damn, OP, you sure you're not some kinda bug?

Almost had my sinuses "routed out" a few years ago.  Talked to a few friends who had it done and chickened out.  

Is this code for too much cocaine in the 70's?

I have tried that, saline rinses, etc... I can't ever get it far enough into the back of the nose

I thought mine was bad. Holeey shit that spur is nuts. I had a very very bad deviated septum that blocked one of my sinuses and it was basically permanently clogged. The rest of them clogged up and it took about a year to get to surgery but I had that done last september.
Best thing I have ever done. It took about a month afterwards for it to start feeling better even after it healed up. But I didn't realize what having a constant infection in my head for years was doing to my health. I feel 1000 times better now. Breathing correctly out of my nose is a nice plus as well. my nose used to drip all the time and I thought it was allergies but it was just that my nose was so malformed.



 

Too little



 

Nah - I was born in 72...

Oh and the week after surgery take off of work and make sure someone is there to help you do stuff the first couple days.  I think I was off the pain meds after 3 days and just on regular tylenol. But they took a good section of bone out of mine as well as cleaning.
The neti pot cleanings for the first three days are amazing. The amount of blood and crap you flush out is mind boggling and disgusting.

 

My pics aren't as bad as yours, but they're bad.  I'm just trying to find the right time to get it done.  Stop researching.  Just commit to it.  You need it.  The only thing stopping me is the idea of getting any kind of medical care in Florida with about 2.8 billion Q-tip headed northerners clogging up the system.  I'll hold on until summer (when they're all gone) if it kills me .

I am in Tally so there aren't many snow birds here...

I am hoping this Dymista can get me through for a few weeks. I really hope I get the promotion. March is shot, the doc said her schedule is booked for the next 3 weeks. April is going to be my best shot. I have to travel to Maryland for a week in May and we have the statewide hurricane exercise that I can't miss that month...

The Dymista opened me up a little but is horrible tasting once you breathe it in

I had my deviated septum fixed last year, and my turbonates reduced as well.

Honestly, it wasn't that bad. A couple days with a bunch of gauze in your nose, I had no problems sleeping. The worst part was when they removed the gauze, that's it.

Your life will change, get it done. Stop putting it off.

ETA: I had the surgery done on Friday, was back to work Tues or Wed I think.

No, it would be much more open with a port and polished channel between the nasal cavities.





 

Tell me more about the r recovery

Day 1 out of surgery, took whatever liquid pain killer they gave me. Had a headache

Day 2, felt better, kept taking the pain meds just in case.

Day 3, was pretty much back to normal.

Day 4, removed the gauze from my nose (that hurt temporarily). Took some more pain killers.

Day 5. What surgery? Nose was tender to the touch but that's it.

Seriously, this was the biggest non event ever.

I had the surgery.  You need it.  The amount of inflamed soft tissue in your sinuses and on your turbinates is astounding.  After healing up from the surgery, us a neti pot and NSAIDS religiously for a month to get the tissue to return to normal.   Took me a week to recover but I had these:  concha bullosa  You only seem to have one, I had four.

Pretty sure it involves hammers and chisels.

Had it done. Majorly sucks for a few days and then minorly sucks for a week or two. Percosets helped.

All in all well worth it. I can actually breathe through my nose again and my yearly allergy sinus infections aren't near as severe.

Just sack up and do it.

I've had sinus problems for over 20 years.  Saline nasal irrigation has helped me immensely.  Rather than a neti pot, I use the Neilmed rinse bottle.  The positive pressure helps.

You can buy a cheap plastic squeeze bottle, one of those with the pointy tips.  Make your own solution with kosher or plain salt (not iodized, that shit burns!) and some baking soda.  Use warm water.  Tip your head back and fill 'er up, both sides,  Try exhaling through your nose to make it percolate.  You can really get it back into the tight spots that way.  DO NOT SWALLOW the solution.

Fuck that noise

I think I have that paisley pattern on a pair of socks somewhere. I would get that fixed soon.

I had my sinus operation Jan 23 of this year.  It was about as bad as you can get.  All 4 sinuses filled with polyps.  It took 3 weeks to recover with flushes every two hours after surgery.  

All said and done I wish I'd have done the procedure a year ago when it all started.   Don't wait and put up with the shit.  Get it over with and feel normal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Kju262arHk





the new way

I had mine fixed a few years ago.I had MANY sinus infections,couldn't breathe through my nose,snored badly..........the usual.
My surgery was a great success! Not much pain afterwards ; the swelling was uncomfortable for 3 or 4 days but not too bad.
Here's the key (in my very limited experience) to quick recovery and EASY packing removal: IRRIGATE,IRRIGATE,IRRIGATE ...if you DON"T do it you'll be sorry.

My sinus' are just as bad as yours.  My local doc says it's the worst he's ever seen, and a Dr. in Nashville took one look up there and exclaimed, "your septum is JACKED UP!"  It ain't good when they say that!

Anyway, I've had surger 3 times now.  Each time, I had positive results for about a year and then here come the sleepless nights and not being able to breath again.  I'm terribly addicted to nose spray.  I have found that cutting it with Saline helps a lot.  Also, some OTC meds have been helping lately.  

Don''t think I'm having it again simply because the two Dr.'s  I've spoken with lately said they could help, but I would never be "normal"

Recovery SUCKS the first day, but quickly gets better after that.  I think I went back to work the fourth day.

skip to about the 2:30 mark and prepare to cringe.  I couldn't watch after that, probably going to have nightmares.
nasal surgery

Enjoy!

I had Balloon Sinuplasty last year. Also removed polyps. Didn't need any packing. Some bleeding but felt great the next day.  It's fun breathing through your nose again.

I had it done about 20 years ago.  Deviated septum repair and turbinate reduction.  

Now it's worse.  My septum is deviated in the other direction.  



My new ENT (a friend) tells me that that I would have been better off without the surgery, and that the ENTs perform these surgeries simply because they make so much money in them.  



Good luck.  I hope you have better luck than me!  

That's a tumor removal.

That's why I didn't watch any videos of pacemaker surgeries until after I got mine put in.



Read up all about it, sure... But no videos till I was home.



 

I had the exact same thing done.  Septoplasty and laser turbinectomy.  It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought.  I couldn't breathe out of my nose for a while but I didn't really have much pain.  I didn't take any of the pain meds they gave me.  The worst part is when they removed the stints and the Dr. stuck a long tube WAY up my nose to suction out the dried blood and bits.  I swear it felt like he was stabbing raw nerves.  I had tears running down my face by the time that was over.  

It was definitely worth it though.  I never get sinus infections anymore and I can breathe freely out of both nostrils

2 questions....

1) what is the cost of this procedure, and what did you have to tell the Dr. to get this ball rolling? Is it as simple as saying "I want this surgery"?

3) how much permanent scarring will there be after your face heals? will your face look any different than before the procedure?

I had the same surgery done in 2011.  My septum wasn't nearly as bad as yours my my turbinates were nearly swollen shut on a regular basis.  The surgery helped but I'll probably need the turbinate reduction done again sometime in the future.  The recovery wasn't horrible, though I did have more bleeding out of one side of my nose than expected.  Took about 3 days off from work and 15 days off from the gym.  The stint removal was...refreshing.  Not a horror story, but a bit of brief unpleasantness followed by a "WOW--I can breathe!"

Probly one of the most painful experiences of my life. Same process as yours ct scan and all. They put plugs in your nose to keep from your nostrils scabbing together I think? Idk for sure but it was fun seeing them pull out these things that looked like they were so long they were up in my brain. You cant breath through your nose with them in. So when you fall asleep breathing through your mouth you wake up with a tongue that feels like a wavy potato chip. Then take a sip of water and you can feel the moisture being absorbed everywhere in your mouth. You dont even has to swallow the water it just absorbs in your tongue. That was a reallu strange feeling. Then the nasal irrigation which is fun seeing copious amounts of scabby bloody snot goblins fall from your nose and drain into your throat.

Good luck.

No facial scarring.  They put you under and go up through your nose with a scope and flexible tool.  Mine cost me the insurance deductible.  My biggest problem was when they pulled out the packing I wasn't ready for it and I yelped pretty loudly.  The pain was very minor and was actually more discomfort from the packing while it was in.  I don't think I took anything stronger than Aleve.

To get the ball rolling just all your regular doctor to have him refer you to an ENT.  You'll have an in office visit, they'll evaluate you and if you need surgery they'll get you set up for a CAT scan.  After that you'll visit again and they'll discuss the exact surgical needs.  Then they'll schedule you for surgery at a clinic.  You'll go in in the morning and be out that afternoon or evening.

I had it done the fall of 2011 for a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates and a polyp.  Things were great until last recently when I started feeling pressure in the lower right sinus.  I've got another polyp and I'm having to wait until after heart surgery to get sinus surgery.

As has been mentioned, it feels great to not have the pressure, to be able to breathe, to not snore as much and to not have all the sinus infections.  If anyone is thinking about it, don't be afraid, they put you out and nothing about the process is very painful at all.

eta:  DrewQ22, did you have the scope type of surgery?  I haven't heard of people needing the tubes since I was in the military and they were doing the old style of surgery.  I know guys who had it back then and it was what you describe, with cocaine as the anesthetic.  Yes, that would be painful.

I'm not clicking that....

That should be your new avatar on every board you visit.

Is that bad?? Is it a complication I should be worried about?

Ok - I clicked it... I won't have that - no way no how...

The balloon thing looked interesting if they could fix my septum that way...

I don't remember them sewing my eyelids shut and splitting my face in two when they did mine. I could have missed it though.



 

That video isn't normal sinus surgery, it's removing a cancerous tumor from somebody's sinus.  Whole different ballgame.

I have pretty good insurance so at this point I am in 2 $40 copays for the initial visit, CT scan, and surgical consult.
Simple as calling and saying GO and from this point forward there should be no additional copays
No external incisions and I will still be my handsome self

Previous surgeries
Vasectomy $40
Double hernia $40
Plantar fasciitis release $40

I'm glad I went on a 45 minute video tour after I had the surgery done.

I'm sorry, that was not clear at all.  Concha bullosa are preexisting anatomy; your turbinates are balloons instead of "rolled up".   It's something you need surgery to correct. From your CT it looks like only the upper left might be like that, but I am not really trained to read CT scans.