 |
Treatment for enlarged inferior turbinates
Large, swollen inferior turbinates are frequently a cause of nasal blockage. If your enlarged turbinates are caused by an allergy or environmental irritant, medical treatment of the underlying cause may reduce turbinate swelling and solve the problem. Long-term chronic swelling, however, can become irreversible and unresponsive to medical therapy. If so, you may need to have turbinate reduction surgery.
| |
|
|
|
Effective turbinate reduction surgery can be a challenge. The inferior turbinates need to be reduced enough in volume to relieve your nasal obstruction and restore healthy breathing and sinus drainage. Yet it's important not to remove too much of the turbinates, especially the mucous lining on the surface of the turbinates, because they serve such a critical function in the breathing process.
As the anatomy section explains, your turbinates are vital to normal breathing because they filter and humidify the air you breathe, as well as create the sensation of air flow through your nose. Your brain needs the special air flow receptor cells on the surface of the inferior turbinates to recognize air is passing through your nose. |
It may sound strange, but if you didn't have these receptors, your brain would perceive that your nasal passages were blocked, even if they physically weren't (a condition called empty nose syndrome).
The surface lining of the turbinates is also necessary because it secretes mucus that keeps the nose moist and limits dryness/crusting after surgery. Additionally, this lining contains thousands of cilia, tiny hairs that sweep the mucus through your nose and sinuses, trapping and evacuating dirt and bacteria.
Because of empty nose syndrome and the importance of mucus production and cilia, there has been a strong trend toward selective turbinate reduction and away from extensive turbinate removal during the past five years. Your doctor will probably opt for targeted turbinate reduction, rather than extensive removal.
Methods of turbinate surgery
Surgery to reduce the turbinates has been performed for more than 100 years. There are a number of surgical methods developed, primarily because it can be so challenging. In general, the goals of turbinate surgery are to:
-
Correct the nasal obstruction to restore normal breathing and drainage
-
Preserve the normal function of the mucous lining
-
Minimize side effects, such as bleeding, crusting and pain
-
Provide long-term results (one to five years)
Traditional and modern techniques include:
After your turbinate surgery
Your surgeon will give you information about what to do and not to do after your turbinate surgery. Potential complications of turbinate surgery include:
-
Bleeding
-
Crusting (an excessively dry nose)
-
Pain
-
Atrophic rhinitis (chronic inflammation and thinning of the nasal mucous lining, often associated with dryness/crusting and foul discharge)
-
Malodor (bad smell)
-
Ozena (a condition of crusting in the nose, foul odor, and tissue atrophy)
-
Anosmia (loss of sense of smell)
Be sure to contact your doctor if you experience any of these side effects after
surgery.
back to top |
