Endiscopic Sinus Surgery

MCGrad2006 · Sep 14, 2009

Welcome to the site!

I just had my fourth sinus surgery a year ago. The first three were when I was 11, 12, 14...and the last one I was 24. So I was able to wait a very long time. I relied very heavily on Motrin to control the inflammation and was taking very high doses. Maybe your son could try that instead of surgery or at least to put it off a few years? Motrin is good for inflammation in lungs and sinuses as long as you dont have bleeding problems and def eat a meal with it. I was on those high doses for probably five years or more and I dont have any side effects.

Since I had the surgery though, I dont need the motrin every day. During allergy season, I find that I have been taking it quite often, but not nearly as high a dose. The sinus surgery really helped me though. Because I was on the motrin I didnt realize how bad my sinuses actually were, so when I got the CT (before surgery) the ENT was like whoa your sinuses are bad. I had a deviated septum and two spots of (what the ENT called) really old mucus that was stuck wayyyyyy up in my frontal sinuses. He was able with the surgery to fix my septum, take out the old mucus and cut up some areas to make air flow better through my sinuses.

But I was also having more lung infections prior to surgery. I felt as though I was sick all the time and on tons of abx...but since then have been on abx only three times. So in conclusion, the sinus surgery made a HUGE difference to me. I was very nervous about it, but I am so glad I did it. Every time I go in to see my CF doctor now, he says so what do you think made such a difference in your health over the last three months (thats how often I see him)? And I chalk it up to the surgery (and AZLI study).

So I guess you have to weigh your options and see what you think will work for you. Talk to your doctors, see if there is something else you can try (motrin, nasal sprays, saline rinses). Good luck deciding!

And yes, I think that sinus surgery does get repeated in CFers many times, but a lot of the time, it is inevitable. My first surgery was solely for polyps, which affected my breathing, so I NEEDED to do the surgery. The following surgeries were for the same thing...and then this last one was to sort of repair the scar tissue (deviated septum and old inflammation), but it was necessary because my sinuses were so filled up. So you may be able to put it off, but it may creep back up in the future too. Who knows...

MCGrad2006 · Sep 14, 2009

Welcome to the site!

I just had my fourth sinus surgery a year ago. The first three were when I was 11, 12, 14...and the last one I was 24. So I was able to wait a very long time. I relied very heavily on Motrin to control the inflammation and was taking very high doses. Maybe your son could try that instead of surgery or at least to put it off a few years? Motrin is good for inflammation in lungs and sinuses as long as you dont have bleeding problems and def eat a meal with it. I was on those high doses for probably five years or more and I dont have any side effects.

Since I had the surgery though, I dont need the motrin every day. During allergy season, I find that I have been taking it quite often, but not nearly as high a dose. The sinus surgery really helped me though. Because I was on the motrin I didnt realize how bad my sinuses actually were, so when I got the CT (before surgery) the ENT was like whoa your sinuses are bad. I had a deviated septum and two spots of (what the ENT called) really old mucus that was stuck wayyyyyy up in my frontal sinuses. He was able with the surgery to fix my septum, take out the old mucus and cut up some areas to make air flow better through my sinuses.

But I was also having more lung infections prior to surgery. I felt as though I was sick all the time and on tons of abx...but since then have been on abx only three times. So in conclusion, the sinus surgery made a HUGE difference to me. I was very nervous about it, but I am so glad I did it. Every time I go in to see my CF doctor now, he says so what do you think made such a difference in your health over the last three months (thats how often I see him)? And I chalk it up to the surgery (and AZLI study).

So I guess you have to weigh your options and see what you think will work for you. Talk to your doctors, see if there is something else you can try (motrin, nasal sprays, saline rinses). Good luck deciding!

And yes, I think that sinus surgery does get repeated in CFers many times, but a lot of the time, it is inevitable. My first surgery was solely for polyps, which affected my breathing, so I NEEDED to do the surgery. The following surgeries were for the same thing...and then this last one was to sort of repair the scar tissue (deviated septum and old inflammation), but it was necessary because my sinuses were so filled up. So you may be able to put it off, but it may creep back up in the future too. Who knows...

MCGrad2006 · Sep 14, 2009

Welcome to the site!

I just had my fourth sinus surgery a year ago. The first three were when I was 11, 12, 14...and the last one I was 24. So I was able to wait a very long time. I relied very heavily on Motrin to control the inflammation and was taking very high doses. Maybe your son could try that instead of surgery or at least to put it off a few years? Motrin is good for inflammation in lungs and sinuses as long as you dont have bleeding problems and def eat a meal with it. I was on those high doses for probably five years or more and I dont have any side effects.

Since I had the surgery though, I dont need the motrin every day. During allergy season, I find that I have been taking it quite often, but not nearly as high a dose. The sinus surgery really helped me though. Because I was on the motrin I didnt realize how bad my sinuses actually were, so when I got the CT (before surgery) the ENT was like whoa your sinuses are bad. I had a deviated septum and two spots of (what the ENT called) really old mucus that was stuck wayyyyyy up in my frontal sinuses. He was able with the surgery to fix my septum, take out the old mucus and cut up some areas to make air flow better through my sinuses.

But I was also having more lung infections prior to surgery. I felt as though I was sick all the time and on tons of abx...but since then have been on abx only three times. So in conclusion, the sinus surgery made a HUGE difference to me. I was very nervous about it, but I am so glad I did it. Every time I go in to see my CF doctor now, he says so what do you think made such a difference in your health over the last three months (thats how often I see him)? And I chalk it up to the surgery (and AZLI study).

So I guess you have to weigh your options and see what you think will work for you. Talk to your doctors, see if there is something else you can try (motrin, nasal sprays, saline rinses). Good luck deciding!

And yes, I think that sinus surgery does get repeated in CFers many times, but a lot of the time, it is inevitable. My first surgery was solely for polyps, which affected my breathing, so I NEEDED to do the surgery. The following surgeries were for the same thing...and then this last one was to sort of repair the scar tissue (deviated septum and old inflammation), but it was necessary because my sinuses were so filled up. So you may be able to put it off, but it may creep back up in the future too. Who knows...

MCGrad2006 · Sep 14, 2009

Welcome to the site!

I just had my fourth sinus surgery a year ago. The first three were when I was 11, 12, 14...and the last one I was 24. So I was able to wait a very long time. I relied very heavily on Motrin to control the inflammation and was taking very high doses. Maybe your son could try that instead of surgery or at least to put it off a few years? Motrin is good for inflammation in lungs and sinuses as long as you dont have bleeding problems and def eat a meal with it. I was on those high doses for probably five years or more and I dont have any side effects.

Since I had the surgery though, I dont need the motrin every day. During allergy season, I find that I have been taking it quite often, but not nearly as high a dose. The sinus surgery really helped me though. Because I was on the motrin I didnt realize how bad my sinuses actually were, so when I got the CT (before surgery) the ENT was like whoa your sinuses are bad. I had a deviated septum and two spots of (what the ENT called) really old mucus that was stuck wayyyyyy up in my frontal sinuses. He was able with the surgery to fix my septum, take out the old mucus and cut up some areas to make air flow better through my sinuses.

But I was also having more lung infections prior to surgery. I felt as though I was sick all the time and on tons of abx...but since then have been on abx only three times. So in conclusion, the sinus surgery made a HUGE difference to me. I was very nervous about it, but I am so glad I did it. Every time I go in to see my CF doctor now, he says so what do you think made such a difference in your health over the last three months (thats how often I see him)? And I chalk it up to the surgery (and AZLI study).

So I guess you have to weigh your options and see what you think will work for you. Talk to your doctors, see if there is something else you can try (motrin, nasal sprays, saline rinses). Good luck deciding!

And yes, I think that sinus surgery does get repeated in CFers many times, but a lot of the time, it is inevitable. My first surgery was solely for polyps, which affected my breathing, so I NEEDED to do the surgery. The following surgeries were for the same thing...and then this last one was to sort of repair the scar tissue (deviated septum and old inflammation), but it was necessary because my sinuses were so filled up. So you may be able to put it off, but it may creep back up in the future too. Who knows...

MCGrad2006 · Sep 14, 2009

Welcome to the site!
 
 I just had my fourth sinus surgery a year ago. The first three were when I was 11, 12, 14...and the last one I was 24. So I was able to wait a very long time. I relied very heavily on Motrin to control the inflammation and was taking very high doses. Maybe your son could try that instead of surgery or at least to put it off a few years? Motrin is good for inflammation in lungs and sinuses as long as you dont have bleeding problems and def eat a meal with it. I was on those high doses for probably five years or more and I dont have any side effects.
 
 Since I had the surgery though, I dont need the motrin every day. During allergy season, I find that I have been taking it quite often, but not nearly as high a dose. The sinus surgery really helped me though. Because I was on the motrin I didnt realize how bad my sinuses actually were, so when I got the CT (before surgery) the ENT was like whoa your sinuses are bad. I had a deviated septum and two spots of (what the ENT called) really old mucus that was stuck wayyyyyy up in my frontal sinuses. He was able with the surgery to fix my septum, take out the old mucus and cut up some areas to make air flow better through my sinuses.
 
 But I was also having more lung infections prior to surgery. I felt as though I was sick all the time and on tons of abx...but since then have been on abx only three times. So in conclusion, the sinus surgery made a HUGE difference to me. I was very nervous about it, but I am so glad I did it. Every time I go in to see my CF doctor now, he says so what do you think made such a difference in your health over the last three months (thats how often I see him)? And I chalk it up to the surgery (and AZLI study).
 
 So I guess you have to weigh your options and see what you think will work for you. Talk to your doctors, see if there is something else you can try (motrin, nasal sprays, saline rinses). Good luck deciding!
 
 And yes, I think that sinus surgery does get repeated in CFers many times, but a lot of the time, it is inevitable. My first surgery was solely for polyps, which affected my breathing, so I NEEDED to do the surgery. The following surgeries were for the same thing...and then this last one was to sort of repair the scar tissue (deviated septum and old inflammation), but it was necessary because my sinuses were so filled up. So you may be able to put it off, but it may creep back up in the future too. Who knows...

Spartan936 · Sep 14, 2009

Mary, you need to have your son be doing nasal irrigations on a daily basis, 2-3 times per day, at home. For someone with bad sinuses, they are as important as breathing treatments. That alone might be enough to get him breathing through his nose more, thus avoiding surgery for awhile. And as for the surgery, it's not as bad as everyone says. I had had several sinus operations by the time I was 10. I've had a total of 8 or 9, and I'm only 22. It does not make a person dependant on surgery. What happens, more often, is that someone with cf NEEDS the surgery every now and then. They are very necessary from time to time to clean out polyps and whatnot. They also may protect the lungs from future infections. So if you trust your ENT, and he says that surgery will likely help, you shouldn't be afraid to go ahead with it. But again, I have to stress the importance of daily sinus rinses. I'm surprised they aren't standard treatment for nearly all cfers.

Spartan936 · Sep 14, 2009

Mary, you need to have your son be doing nasal irrigations on a daily basis, 2-3 times per day, at home. For someone with bad sinuses, they are as important as breathing treatments. That alone might be enough to get him breathing through his nose more, thus avoiding surgery for awhile. And as for the surgery, it's not as bad as everyone says. I had had several sinus operations by the time I was 10. I've had a total of 8 or 9, and I'm only 22. It does not make a person dependant on surgery. What happens, more often, is that someone with cf NEEDS the surgery every now and then. They are very necessary from time to time to clean out polyps and whatnot. They also may protect the lungs from future infections. So if you trust your ENT, and he says that surgery will likely help, you shouldn't be afraid to go ahead with it. But again, I have to stress the importance of daily sinus rinses. I'm surprised they aren't standard treatment for nearly all cfers.

Spartan936 · Sep 14, 2009

Mary, you need to have your son be doing nasal irrigations on a daily basis, 2-3 times per day, at home. For someone with bad sinuses, they are as important as breathing treatments. That alone might be enough to get him breathing through his nose more, thus avoiding surgery for awhile. And as for the surgery, it's not as bad as everyone says. I had had several sinus operations by the time I was 10. I've had a total of 8 or 9, and I'm only 22. It does not make a person dependant on surgery. What happens, more often, is that someone with cf NEEDS the surgery every now and then. They are very necessary from time to time to clean out polyps and whatnot. They also may protect the lungs from future infections. So if you trust your ENT, and he says that surgery will likely help, you shouldn't be afraid to go ahead with it. But again, I have to stress the importance of daily sinus rinses. I'm surprised they aren't standard treatment for nearly all cfers.

Spartan936 · Sep 14, 2009

Mary, you need to have your son be doing nasal irrigations on a daily basis, 2-3 times per day, at home. For someone with bad sinuses, they are as important as breathing treatments. That alone might be enough to get him breathing through his nose more, thus avoiding surgery for awhile. And as for the surgery, it's not as bad as everyone says. I had had several sinus operations by the time I was 10. I've had a total of 8 or 9, and I'm only 22. It does not make a person dependant on surgery. What happens, more often, is that someone with cf NEEDS the surgery every now and then. They are very necessary from time to time to clean out polyps and whatnot. They also may protect the lungs from future infections. So if you trust your ENT, and he says that surgery will likely help, you shouldn't be afraid to go ahead with it. But again, I have to stress the importance of daily sinus rinses. I'm surprised they aren't standard treatment for nearly all cfers.

Spartan936 · Sep 14, 2009

Mary, you need to have your son be doing nasal irrigations on a daily basis, 2-3 times per day, at home. For someone with bad sinuses, they are as important as breathing treatments. That alone might be enough to get him breathing through his nose more, thus avoiding surgery for awhile. And as for the surgery, it's not as bad as everyone says. I had had several sinus operations by the time I was 10. I've had a total of 8 or 9, and I'm only 22. It does not make a person dependant on surgery. What happens, more often, is that someone with cf NEEDS the surgery every now and then. They are very necessary from time to time to clean out polyps and whatnot. They also may protect the lungs from future infections. So if you trust your ENT, and he says that surgery will likely help, you shouldn't be afraid to go ahead with it. But again, I have to stress the importance of daily sinus rinses. I'm surprised they aren't standard treatment for nearly all cfers.

cfpatience · Sep 15, 2009