Deviated Septum Surgery anyone?

[macewa]

I have set up surgery for my deviated septum problem. One side of my nose is blocked 70% and the other 30%. That pretty much means I have half of my breathing capacity, right? My pressure for BiPap are 17/22 and with that I get a AHI of 7.7 to 7.9. My original pressures were 19/25 and we don't even know if that was working. My doctor wants me to do another sleep study, which I will do, but figured if I was going to have surgery, I needed to do that prior to another sleep study. I know my sleep doctor will not be happy about my decision, but my ENT has encouraged me to do this. Currently, in order to stay awake and function I have been taking Ritalin. I also have pretty bad vertigo and have had a brain MRI and ultrasound of caroid arteries and both of those were okay. Am getting ready to do some type of dizzy test. I think though, that this is part of my sleep apnea problem.

My question is, has anyone else had the deviated septum surgery and has it helped? I am hoping that it will help reduce the air pressure I need to use and will help me get my apnea under control. In preparation for the dizzy test I had to come off the Ritalin and boy oh boy can I tell the difference.

I am also doing a food plan to lose weight and have lost about 6 pounds the last ten or so days. I also try to walk 1 to 1.5miles a day at the gym, but off the Ritalin, find I can't do that without being totally worn out.

Any helpful info is truly appreciated

Mary

[LSAT]

I had the surgery about 18 months ago. I was not having trouble with my breathing at the time. The DS was repaired at the same time I had some polyps removed. It made no difference in my CPAP pressure. You will need to sleep without your CPAP for 5-7 days after the surgery.....I slept in a recliner.

[macewa]

Do you know how much blockage you had from the DS? I am not looking forward to this surgery at all.
I do know that when I have problems with runny burning nose using my mask it is always on the side that I have the 70-% blockage. hmmmm.

[n0hardmask]

Howdy, Mary. my experience resembles yours except that I didn't get diagnosed with Apnea until after I had the nasal surgery.
I definitely experienced dizziness -and still do on occasion- and lots of sinus infections due to non-drainage. Have had allergies for decades, of course and probably had apnea but it wasn't discovered until last summmer.
I feel that having the surgery, though anything but a cure-all, means that I can use a pressure of 10 - 13 instead of a much higher pressure, had I gone on xPAP before the surgery.
My one regret about the surgery is they didn't do the turbonates (sp?) ...and I didn't want to revisit full anesthesia surgery for something that doesn't generally last forever. Getting both done would probably have made a more lasting difference.
I imagine that having the surgery, particularly if they do the turbonates as well will mean delaying your xPAP a few weeks or more. Results vary.. your experience may be better or worse. But definitely go for the deviated septum and see what they can do for the other side while they're in there, IMHO.
very best wishes for a successful outcome. earl

[chunkyfrog]

It is a good idea to check your surgeon's credentials beforehand;
especially how many surgeries performed, how many years doing this surgery, etc.
Recent good (or bad) press.
A little research could serve you well.
I would not consider any surgery without knowing what the doc's reputation is.

[macewa]

Thanks for your response. I am scheduled to have the turbonates (sp?) done too. When she examines my nose they are usually swollen. They pointed out that doing the DS and not the turbonates could mean swelling that would cause blockage even though the DS was dealt with. So,am having both things done to both sides of my nose. Scary for me. I have severe allergies and am going weekly for two shots. Allergic to just about everything outdoors, fortunately not things indoors. I figure that the sleep apnea along with the allergies is what is causing my vertigo, but it has been pretty bad for the last five months and need to be sure it's not something else. Without the Ritalin, the dizzyness is much worse. Interesting. My concern has been that they will discover that I need an air pressure so high that I cannot use it and what I want is my life back. I keep thinking that if the space in my nose that the air has to go through is larger, then perhaps the pressure can be lower. And if nothing else, the surgery might open my nose up enough that I don't get the wind burn inside on that really blocked side.

Howdy, Mary. my experience resembles yours except that I didn't get diagnosed with Apnea until after I had the nasal surgery.
I definitely experienced dizziness -and still do on occasion- and lots of sinus infections due to non-drainage. Have had allergies for decades, of course and probably had apnea but it wasn't discovered until last summmer.
I feel that having the surgery, though anything but a cure-all, means that I can use a pressure of 10 - 13 instead of a much higher pressure, had I gone on xPAP before the surgery.
My one regret about the surgery is they didn't do the turbonates (sp?) ...and I didn't want to revisit full anesthesia surgery for something that doesn't generally last forever. Getting both done would probably have made a more lasting difference.
I imagine that having the surgery, particularly if they do the turbonates as well will mean delaying your xPAP a few weeks or more. Results vary.. your experience may be better or worse. But definitely go for the deviated septum and see what they can do for the other side while they're in there, IMHO.
very best wishes for a successful outcome. earl

[msla]

I had the DS done for a different reason before OSA diagnoses and treatment. I would ask the Dr about a full face mask to use while recovering from the surgery. It would allow breathing through your mouth. As for the vertigo, have you looked into the Otolith Repositioning ( Epley Maneuver )? This works for vertigo due to the particles being in the wrong place in the semi-circular canals. It took care of my vertigo. Good luck with the surgery.

[Uncle_Bob]

I've had the surgery for deviated septum and a turbinate reduction done at the same time.
I'm really glad i did, the recovery can be awkward although not painful. But worth it
I went from using an APAP range of 7-10cm to a range of 4.4-7cm and most of the time i average about 5.6cm.
My orginal titrated pressure was 7cm and my titrated pressure following surgery was 6cm (It was actually between 5 & 6 so they rounded upto 6cm).
I used to start off at 4cm at first but found that its not enough pressure to actually breath. If i get congested i up it to 5cm.

You might want to find out what kind of splints your surgeon is going to be using. Some still use the older plug type splints.
I had the newer tube type that allows you to breath through your nose and makes drainage easier.

I normally use a nasal mask but i have a full face which i did try to use but i couldn't use it so i spent 4-5 night sleeping in an elevated position in my recliner.

Having your splints removed can be a wow experince when you take your first few breaths through your nose and realize how much more efficient breathing for your nose is.
Another down size is that you may get some swelling for a few weeks which will fell like congestion. It took a total of 2 months before i was done with it all.

Good luck.

[zeleni]

I had a septoplasty about seven years ago. Over time it has helped, but it took longer than expected and was less dramatic. I can breathe from my nose now which is great. Recovery was brutal for me. I was told to avoid a winter surgery but ignored it and wish I hadn't. The packing was very uncomfortable, but my new ENT says he doesn't use that method and most don't. So watch out for that. My nose has also been sore and I have some twitching . This was all years before my apnea was discovered, so it didn't help me much (maybe some since i wasn't tested before).

[Kilgore Trout]

I have set up surgery for my deviated septum problem.

I'll keep the fingers and toes crossed for you Mary, I have the same thing lined up for mid-Feb (along with a turbinectomy).

Learn from my mistakes: don't look it up on youtube.

[macewa]

Of course. Who wouldn't?

It is a good idea to check your surgeon's credentials beforehand;
especially how many surgeries performed, how many years doing this surgery, etc.
Recent good (or bad) press.
A little research could serve you well.
I would not consider any surgery without knowing what the doc's reputation is.

[macewa]

I will look into that. I certainly don't need to fall and break bones on top of all this other stuff.

I had the DS done for a different reason before OSA diagnoses and treatment. I would ask the Dr about a full face mask to use while recovering from the surgery. It would allow breathing through your mouth. As for the vertigo, have you looked into the Otolith Repositioning ( Epley Maneuver )? This works for vertigo due to the particles being in the wrong place in the semi-circular canals. It took care of my vertigo. Good luck with the surgery.

I had the DS done for a different reason before OSA diagnoses and treatment. I would ask the Dr about a full face mask to use while recovering from the surgery. It would allow breathing through your mouth. As for the vertigo, have you looked into the Otolith Repositioning ( Epley Maneuver )? This works for vertigo due to the particles being in the wrong place in the semi-circular canals. It took care of my vertigo. Good luck with the surgery.

[macewa]

I'm having both things done. My original settings were 17/25 and I do use a FFM. I will see my ENT doctor on Thursday and will ask about the splints. I'm prepared for pain (as much as one can prepare) and I'm hoping it helps me. My sleep doctor will be upset with me, but then, it's my life and I have to do what I think might help me. Thanks so much for sharing you success with me. It help calm me a bit. Luckily I have a recliner in my living room. People use to tell me to get rid of it, but good that I didn't. I plan to sleep there for quite some time (and its large and comfy). My sleep doctor wants to do another sleep study on me since the first one was done by someone else and I figured I'd get this done prior to that and hopefully, he will be able to lower my numbers. Since I'm extremely blocked on one side, and that is the side that gets like wind burn inside the nose where it burns to breathe, I figure after surgery that might not happen anymore. Mary

I've had the surgery for deviated septum and a turbinate reduction done at the same time.
I'm really glad i did, the recovery can be awkward although not painful. But worth it
I went from using an APAP range of 7-10cm to a range of 4.4-7cm and most of the time i average about 5.6cm.
My orginal titrated pressure was 7cm and my titrated pressure following surgery was 6cm (It was actually between 5 & 6 so they rounded upto 6cm).
I used to start off at 4cm at first but found that its not enough pressure to actually breath. If i get congested i up it to 5cm.

You might want to find out what kind of splints your surgeon is going to be using. Some still use the older plug type splints.
I had the newer tube type that allows you to breath through your nose and makes drainage easier.

I normally use a nasal mask but i have a full face which i did try to use but i couldn't use it so i spent 4-5 night sleeping in an elevated position in my recliner.

Having your splints removed can be a wow experince when you take your first few breaths through your nose and realize how much more efficient breathing for your nose is.
Another down size is that you may get some swelling for a few weeks which will fell like congestion. It took a total of 2 months before i was done with it all.

Good luck.

I've had the surgery for deviated septum and a turbinate reduction done at the same time.
I'm really glad i did, the recovery can be awkward although not painful. But worth it
I went from using an APAP range of 7-10cm to a range of 4.4-7cm and most of the time i average about 5.6cm.
My orginal titrated pressure was 7cm and my titrated pressure following surgery was 6cm (It was actually between 5 & 6 so they rounded upto 6cm).
I used to start off at 4cm at first but found that its not enough pressure to actually breath. If i get congested i up it to 5cm.

You might want to find out what kind of splints your surgeon is going to be using. Some still use the older plug type splints.
I had the newer tube type that allows you to breath through your nose and makes drainage easier.

I normally use a nasal mask but i have a full face which i did try to use but i couldn't use it so i spent 4-5 night sleeping in an elevated position in my recliner.

Having your splints removed can be a wow experince when you take your first few breaths through your nose and realize how much more efficient breathing for your nose is.
Another down size is that you may get some swelling for a few weeks which will fell like congestion. It took a total of 2 months before i was done with it all.

Good luck.

[macewa]

Thanks! I'm having both things done too. I'll post afterwards how things went.

I have set up surgery for my deviated septum problem.

I'll keep the fingers and toes crossed for you Mary, I have the same thing lined up for mid-Feb (along with a turbinectomy).

Learn from my mistakes: don't look it up on youtube.

I have set up surgery for my deviated septum problem.

I'll keep the fingers and toes crossed for you Mary, I have the same thing lined up for mid-Feb (along with a turbinectomy).

Learn from my mistakes: don't look it up on youtube.

[soundersfootballclub]

I was about to have that done b4 I was diagnosed with sleep apnea since my complaint was night time congestion. I did have turbinate reduction procedure. Now after being on CPAP since the summer and most recently trying out oral appliance I realize having nasal surgery would not help at all with my sleep apnea symptoms and would have been a waste. The issue is most likely in your throat or size of tongue not your nasal passage especially if you have a crowded throat and small jaw.