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the sinuses are a series of tubes
Jul. 11th, 2013 06:51 pmTomorrow I am going in for a balloon sinuplasty - and not a moment too soon.
My whole adult life, as regular readers may have deduced, I've had trouble with sinus infections. Used to be I'd have at least four in a season; a few years ago I finally got my allergies under control and it hasn't been that bad, but I'd still say once or twice a year I have to get the antibiotics and stock up on the yogurt and be miserable for a bit. A couple of years ago I had what seemed to be a lingering troublesome sinus issue - abx didn't touch it, and the allergist sent me for a CT scan, which showed that everything was clear, so he referred me to an ENT, who pressed on the sides of my head and said he wasn't saying I didn't have sinus problems, but what was bothering me right then was TMJ, and sent me to a dentist. The dentist fixed a lot of things and also sent me to an orthodontist. Now that I'm done with the orthodontist, I'm back at the ENT - who, having ordered a new CT scan since the previous one was three years old, says my septum is interestingly deviated, my turbinates are hypertrophic, some of the sinus passages are almost occluded, and there's still some remnants up in my frontal sinuses of the infection I picked up in the middle of May. Not a lot, but systemic antibiotics didn't get it and it's up near my brain, so he wants to go in and open it up balloonwise, give it a rinse and a spritz with topical antibiotics, and then talk some time later about fixing the septum and turbinates surgically.
Everyone I know who has had their sinuses fixed has spoken highly of the procedure. My mother says she's had two sinus infections in twelve years. My college roommate says it changed her life. (And having known her before and after she had the work done, I know this is true.) What I'm getting tomorrow isn't even the big slice. It's an office procedure that I could even drive myself home from, if I wanted. (Apart from, the ENT said it's easier than root canal, which I considered to be damning with faint praise, and asked for the optional Valium - side note, for my anxiety when my dad was sick I was taking 0.5mg of Ativan, and what I have for tomorrow is 5mg of Valium, so they say chill out and I expect I will be unconscious - because I figure there's no need to have wiggins if I don't want to have wiggins. The office is a block and a half from Himself's workplace, so I'll take the bus and he'll bring me home after.)
But I am a little nervous. Maybe I'll feel less queasy once the work is done and I'm no longer one big post-nasal drip.
My whole adult life, as regular readers may have deduced, I've had trouble with sinus infections. Used to be I'd have at least four in a season; a few years ago I finally got my allergies under control and it hasn't been that bad, but I'd still say once or twice a year I have to get the antibiotics and stock up on the yogurt and be miserable for a bit. A couple of years ago I had what seemed to be a lingering troublesome sinus issue - abx didn't touch it, and the allergist sent me for a CT scan, which showed that everything was clear, so he referred me to an ENT, who pressed on the sides of my head and said he wasn't saying I didn't have sinus problems, but what was bothering me right then was TMJ, and sent me to a dentist. The dentist fixed a lot of things and also sent me to an orthodontist. Now that I'm done with the orthodontist, I'm back at the ENT - who, having ordered a new CT scan since the previous one was three years old, says my septum is interestingly deviated, my turbinates are hypertrophic, some of the sinus passages are almost occluded, and there's still some remnants up in my frontal sinuses of the infection I picked up in the middle of May. Not a lot, but systemic antibiotics didn't get it and it's up near my brain, so he wants to go in and open it up balloonwise, give it a rinse and a spritz with topical antibiotics, and then talk some time later about fixing the septum and turbinates surgically.
Everyone I know who has had their sinuses fixed has spoken highly of the procedure. My mother says she's had two sinus infections in twelve years. My college roommate says it changed her life. (And having known her before and after she had the work done, I know this is true.) What I'm getting tomorrow isn't even the big slice. It's an office procedure that I could even drive myself home from, if I wanted. (Apart from, the ENT said it's easier than root canal, which I considered to be damning with faint praise, and asked for the optional Valium - side note, for my anxiety when my dad was sick I was taking 0.5mg of Ativan, and what I have for tomorrow is 5mg of Valium, so they say chill out and I expect I will be unconscious - because I figure there's no need to have wiggins if I don't want to have wiggins. The office is a block and a half from Himself's workplace, so I'll take the bus and he'll bring me home after.)
But I am a little nervous. Maybe I'll feel less queasy once the work is done and I'm no longer one big post-nasal drip.
