Endoscopic Sinus Surgery

I feel so blessed that my ENT doctor practices endoscopic sinus surgery, and that this form of surgery has been developed.

If I was older and would have received this surgery 30, 20, or even 10 years ago my form of surgery may have been completely different (sadly some doctors today are even still living in the past). Sinus surgery (as with all forms of surgery) used to be much more intense. There was a common form of surgery where the doctor (if he needed to operate of the maxillary sinuses) would make an incision from about the patient's mouth to their ear and fold back the skin to operate on that side's maxillary sinus. Obviously outward stitches and a long recovery would ensue after the surgery with mild scarring. Imagine how you would look if you had to have both your maxillary sinuses operated on? I picture the Joker from the Batman movie... I guess we finally know how he got his scars.

The surgery process above is only one of many different techniques doctors would use the solve sinus problems. Most of the reading that I have done describes basic outward incisions, like the one described above, over/near the sinus site that was having issues.

I will repeat, I am so happy that they developed Endoscopic Sinus Surgery!

According to ehealthmd.com, endoscopic sinus surgery can be described as: "A thin, lighted instrument called an endoscope is inserted into the nose, and the doctor looks inside through an eyepiece. Much like a telescope with a wide-angle camera lens, the endoscope beams light into different parts of the nose and sinuses, allowing the doctor to see what is causing blockages. Surgical instruments can then be used along with the endoscope to remove the blockages and improve breathing.

This surgery does not involve cutting through the skin, as it is performed entirely through the nostrils. Therefore, most people can go home the same day."* Which was my case. I love being taken care of in a hospital room, but there is no place like home! 

Medical technology has gone a long way! I am so grateful people have done research to move us forward and that I didn't have to look like the Joker following my surgery!

*To learn more about Endoscopic Sinus Surgery you can visit the website where I found the surgery description used above: http://ehealthmd.com/library/endosinus/ess_whatis.html .