Sinus Surgery

igotalife · Jul 21, 2008

i have not had the surgery done and here is why. 2 yrs ago my cf doc referred me to a specialist. i went, and he said i had a deviated septum, no polyps but heavy drainage-basically i'd been walking around w sinus infections all the time and have been so used to it i barely realize it anymore.
i got prescribed gentamycin washes and irrigations. i did them occasionally-honestly not faithfully. i also had flonase which i did regularly.
at the time the doc said it was 50/50. i could do the surgery to correct it, but there was just as much a chance that it would do nothing that it would help. he leaned towards doing it since he felt it was fairly easy and not a major surgery.
in the meantime i was trying to get preg which i did so the surgery was put off. i wasn't leaning towards it anyway.

i just went for a follow up 2 wks ago. my sinuses actually are somewhat improved from 2 yrs ago. drainage but no infection, no polyps. still the bad septum of course.

the doc thoughts were that if i find that most of my cf exacerbations are a result of beginning w a sinus inf or 'head cold'...and it is more than 3 per year-surgery would be a good choice. it can show if this bad septum is contributing to the inflammation and drainage issues.
but he said if i am getting 1-2 infections a year and they are pretty controlled why go through surgery.

so my game is to be checked up each year and go from there.

igotalife · Jul 21, 2008

i have not had the surgery done and here is why. 2 yrs ago my cf doc referred me to a specialist. i went, and he said i had a deviated septum, no polyps but heavy drainage-basically i'd been walking around w sinus infections all the time and have been so used to it i barely realize it anymore.
i got prescribed gentamycin washes and irrigations. i did them occasionally-honestly not faithfully. i also had flonase which i did regularly.
at the time the doc said it was 50/50. i could do the surgery to correct it, but there was just as much a chance that it would do nothing that it would help. he leaned towards doing it since he felt it was fairly easy and not a major surgery.
in the meantime i was trying to get preg which i did so the surgery was put off. i wasn't leaning towards it anyway.

i just went for a follow up 2 wks ago. my sinuses actually are somewhat improved from 2 yrs ago. drainage but no infection, no polyps. still the bad septum of course.

the doc thoughts were that if i find that most of my cf exacerbations are a result of beginning w a sinus inf or 'head cold'...and it is more than 3 per year-surgery would be a good choice. it can show if this bad septum is contributing to the inflammation and drainage issues.
but he said if i am getting 1-2 infections a year and they are pretty controlled why go through surgery.

so my game is to be checked up each year and go from there.

igotalife · Jul 21, 2008

i have not had the surgery done and here is why. 2 yrs ago my cf doc referred me to a specialist. i went, and he said i had a deviated septum, no polyps but heavy drainage-basically i'd been walking around w sinus infections all the time and have been so used to it i barely realize it anymore.
i got prescribed gentamycin washes and irrigations. i did them occasionally-honestly not faithfully. i also had flonase which i did regularly.
at the time the doc said it was 50/50. i could do the surgery to correct it, but there was just as much a chance that it would do nothing that it would help. he leaned towards doing it since he felt it was fairly easy and not a major surgery.
in the meantime i was trying to get preg which i did so the surgery was put off. i wasn't leaning towards it anyway.

i just went for a follow up 2 wks ago. my sinuses actually are somewhat improved from 2 yrs ago. drainage but no infection, no polyps. still the bad septum of course.

the doc thoughts were that if i find that most of my cf exacerbations are a result of beginning w a sinus inf or 'head cold'...and it is more than 3 per year-surgery would be a good choice. it can show if this bad septum is contributing to the inflammation and drainage issues.
but he said if i am getting 1-2 infections a year and they are pretty controlled why go through surgery.

so my game is to be checked up each year and go from there.

igotalife · Jul 21, 2008

i have not had the surgery done and here is why. 2 yrs ago my cf doc referred me to a specialist. i went, and he said i had a deviated septum, no polyps but heavy drainage-basically i'd been walking around w sinus infections all the time and have been so used to it i barely realize it anymore.
i got prescribed gentamycin washes and irrigations. i did them occasionally-honestly not faithfully. i also had flonase which i did regularly.
at the time the doc said it was 50/50. i could do the surgery to correct it, but there was just as much a chance that it would do nothing that it would help. he leaned towards doing it since he felt it was fairly easy and not a major surgery.
in the meantime i was trying to get preg which i did so the surgery was put off. i wasn't leaning towards it anyway.

i just went for a follow up 2 wks ago. my sinuses actually are somewhat improved from 2 yrs ago. drainage but no infection, no polyps. still the bad septum of course.

the doc thoughts were that if i find that most of my cf exacerbations are a result of beginning w a sinus inf or 'head cold'...and it is more than 3 per year-surgery would be a good choice. it can show if this bad septum is contributing to the inflammation and drainage issues.
but he said if i am getting 1-2 infections a year and they are pretty controlled why go through surgery.

so my game is to be checked up each year and go from there.

igotalife · Jul 21, 2008

i have not had the surgery done and here is why. 2 yrs ago my cf doc referred me to a specialist. i went, and he said i had a deviated septum, no polyps but heavy drainage-basically i'd been walking around w sinus infections all the time and have been so used to it i barely realize it anymore.
 i got prescribed gentamycin washes and irrigations. i did them occasionally-honestly not faithfully. i also had flonase which i did regularly.
 at the time the doc said it was 50/50. i could do the surgery to correct it, but there was just as much a chance that it would do nothing that it would help. he leaned towards doing it since he felt it was fairly easy and not a major surgery.
 in the meantime i was trying to get preg which i did so the surgery was put off. i wasn't leaning towards it anyway.
 
 i just went for a follow up 2 wks ago. my sinuses actually are somewhat improved from 2 yrs ago. drainage but no infection, no polyps. still the bad septum of course.
 
 the doc thoughts were that if i find that most of my cf exacerbations are a result of beginning w a sinus inf or 'head cold'...and it is more than 3 per year-surgery would be a good choice. it can show if this bad septum is contributing to the inflammation and drainage issues.
 but he said if i am getting 1-2 infections a year and they are pretty controlled why go through surgery.
 
 so my game is to be checked up each year and go from there.

smccanl · Jul 21, 2008

I had the surgery (functional endoscopic sinus surgery) about 12 or 13 years ago (LONG before anyone thought I might have CF). But anyway, I knew I needed it because high doses of antibiotics for 6 months straight only kept me just well enough to function in college, but I still had terrible trouble breathing, constant thick green mucus, headaches, LOUD snoring (tough in college with a roommate), etc... Medicine just wasn't making a difference any more.

The surgery was reasonably effective. I've never been as sick since as I was for the 5 years before I got it. I still get a lot of infections, but they can usually be cleared with just one course of antibiotics.

Also, I was seeing a really well-respected doctor at a terrific teaching hospital who reminded me of my grandfather, and I probably would have jumped off a bridge if he told me to <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">

Good luck.

smccanl · Jul 21, 2008

I had the surgery (functional endoscopic sinus surgery) about 12 or 13 years ago (LONG before anyone thought I might have CF). But anyway, I knew I needed it because high doses of antibiotics for 6 months straight only kept me just well enough to function in college, but I still had terrible trouble breathing, constant thick green mucus, headaches, LOUD snoring (tough in college with a roommate), etc... Medicine just wasn't making a difference any more.

The surgery was reasonably effective. I've never been as sick since as I was for the 5 years before I got it. I still get a lot of infections, but they can usually be cleared with just one course of antibiotics.

Also, I was seeing a really well-respected doctor at a terrific teaching hospital who reminded me of my grandfather, and I probably would have jumped off a bridge if he told me to <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">

Good luck.

smccanl · Jul 21, 2008

I had the surgery (functional endoscopic sinus surgery) about 12 or 13 years ago (LONG before anyone thought I might have CF). But anyway, I knew I needed it because high doses of antibiotics for 6 months straight only kept me just well enough to function in college, but I still had terrible trouble breathing, constant thick green mucus, headaches, LOUD snoring (tough in college with a roommate), etc... Medicine just wasn't making a difference any more.

The surgery was reasonably effective. I've never been as sick since as I was for the 5 years before I got it. I still get a lot of infections, but they can usually be cleared with just one course of antibiotics.

Also, I was seeing a really well-respected doctor at a terrific teaching hospital who reminded me of my grandfather, and I probably would have jumped off a bridge if he told me to <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">

Good luck.

smccanl · Jul 21, 2008

I had the surgery (functional endoscopic sinus surgery) about 12 or 13 years ago (LONG before anyone thought I might have CF). But anyway, I knew I needed it because high doses of antibiotics for 6 months straight only kept me just well enough to function in college, but I still had terrible trouble breathing, constant thick green mucus, headaches, LOUD snoring (tough in college with a roommate), etc... Medicine just wasn't making a difference any more.

The surgery was reasonably effective. I've never been as sick since as I was for the 5 years before I got it. I still get a lot of infections, but they can usually be cleared with just one course of antibiotics.

Also, I was seeing a really well-respected doctor at a terrific teaching hospital who reminded me of my grandfather, and I probably would have jumped off a bridge if he told me to <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">

Good luck.

smccanl · Jul 21, 2008

I had the surgery (functional endoscopic sinus surgery) about 12 or 13 years ago (LONG before anyone thought I might have CF). But anyway, I knew I needed it because high doses of antibiotics for 6 months straight only kept me just well enough to function in college, but I still had terrible trouble breathing, constant thick green mucus, headaches, LOUD snoring (tough in college with a roommate), etc... Medicine just wasn't making a difference any more.
 
 The surgery was reasonably effective. I've never been as sick since as I was for the 5 years before I got it. I still get a lot of infections, but they can usually be cleared with just one course of antibiotics.
 
 Also, I was seeing a really well-respected doctor at a terrific teaching hospital who reminded me of my grandfather, and I probably would have jumped off a bridge if he told me to <img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif" border="0">
 
 Good luck.

lmattaway · Jul 21, 2008

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and every one left me feeling so much better than before. I got to a point where I couldn't really breathe out my nose at all, resetting my septum so it was straight helped a lot. As well as cleaning out all the "gunk." I haven't had a surgery in over 4 years (I was on an every 3 yr cycle for a while) but I still get green mucus out of my nose when I do saline rinses. I think it's just always going to be that way. The sinus rinses help immensely. Admittedly my surgeries were prompted by polyp growth, so it's slightly different.

lmattaway · Jul 21, 2008

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and every one left me feeling so much better than before. I got to a point where I couldn't really breathe out my nose at all, resetting my septum so it was straight helped a lot. As well as cleaning out all the "gunk." I haven't had a surgery in over 4 years (I was on an every 3 yr cycle for a while) but I still get green mucus out of my nose when I do saline rinses. I think it's just always going to be that way. The sinus rinses help immensely. Admittedly my surgeries were prompted by polyp growth, so it's slightly different.

lmattaway · Jul 21, 2008

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and every one left me feeling so much better than before. I got to a point where I couldn't really breathe out my nose at all, resetting my septum so it was straight helped a lot. As well as cleaning out all the "gunk." I haven't had a surgery in over 4 years (I was on an every 3 yr cycle for a while) but I still get green mucus out of my nose when I do saline rinses. I think it's just always going to be that way. The sinus rinses help immensely. Admittedly my surgeries were prompted by polyp growth, so it's slightly different.

lmattaway · Jul 21, 2008

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and every one left me feeling so much better than before. I got to a point where I couldn't really breathe out my nose at all, resetting my septum so it was straight helped a lot. As well as cleaning out all the "gunk." I haven't had a surgery in over 4 years (I was on an every 3 yr cycle for a while) but I still get green mucus out of my nose when I do saline rinses. I think it's just always going to be that way. The sinus rinses help immensely. Admittedly my surgeries were prompted by polyp growth, so it's slightly different.

lmattaway · Jul 21, 2008

I've had 3 sinus surgeries and every one left me feeling so much better than before. I got to a point where I couldn't really breathe out my nose at all, resetting my septum so it was straight helped a lot. As well as cleaning out all the "gunk." I haven't had a surgery in over 4 years (I was on an every 3 yr cycle for a while) but I still get green mucus out of my nose when I do saline rinses. I think it's just always going to be that way. The sinus rinses help immensely. Admittedly my surgeries were prompted by polyp growth, so it's slightly different.

Kristen · Jul 22, 2008

My ENT didn't ask my opinion, he just said I needed it. But if I had a choice, I still would have done it. I didn't have headaches, and I could breath through my nose. The thing that made it miserable for me was that my body was so busy fighting the infection that I was SO TIRED and almost always had a low grade fever and night sweats.

That was 3 or 4 years ago and I haven't felt that way since, although I have been having pretty bad headaches lately and am actually going to the ENT this week because of it.

Kristen · Jul 22, 2008

My ENT didn't ask my opinion, he just said I needed it. But if I had a choice, I still would have done it. I didn't have headaches, and I could breath through my nose. The thing that made it miserable for me was that my body was so busy fighting the infection that I was SO TIRED and almost always had a low grade fever and night sweats.

That was 3 or 4 years ago and I haven't felt that way since, although I have been having pretty bad headaches lately and am actually going to the ENT this week because of it.

Kristen · Jul 22, 2008

My ENT didn't ask my opinion, he just said I needed it. But if I had a choice, I still would have done it. I didn't have headaches, and I could breath through my nose. The thing that made it miserable for me was that my body was so busy fighting the infection that I was SO TIRED and almost always had a low grade fever and night sweats.

That was 3 or 4 years ago and I haven't felt that way since, although I have been having pretty bad headaches lately and am actually going to the ENT this week because of it.

Kristen · Jul 22, 2008

My ENT didn't ask my opinion, he just said I needed it. But if I had a choice, I still would have done it. I didn't have headaches, and I could breath through my nose. The thing that made it miserable for me was that my body was so busy fighting the infection that I was SO TIRED and almost always had a low grade fever and night sweats.

That was 3 or 4 years ago and I haven't felt that way since, although I have been having pretty bad headaches lately and am actually going to the ENT this week because of it.

Kristen · Jul 22, 2008

My ENT didn't ask my opinion, he just said I needed it. But if I had a choice, I still would have done it. I didn't have headaches, and I could breath through my nose. The thing that made it miserable for me was that my body was so busy fighting the infection that I was SO TIRED and almost always had a low grade fever and night sweats.
 
 That was 3 or 4 years ago and I haven't felt that way since, although I have been having pretty bad headaches lately and am actually going to the ENT this week because of it.

Sinus Surgery

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