Septoplasty / perforated septum

Question:

In January (‘05), I had two procedures; septoplasty and ESS (specifically, maxillary  antrostomy).  During recovery, I developed a hole in my septum.  I could hear whistling which prompted me to do a little more research and found that a hole can cause this.  I can actually see the perforation; I estimate that it’s a bit smaller in diameter than a q-tip end (don’t worry, I’m not stuffing q-tips up my nose for reference).  My ENT thinks there’s a good chance it will heal on its own and close.  I am VERY sceptical about this. 1) Is it fairly common for a perforation to heal on its own? 2) How do they develop?  Did I do something wrong during recovery, did the surgeon make a mistake, or is it other factors? If you have any anecdotal information about these perforations, please pass it on to me.

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -On Mon, 14 Feb 2005 12:12:19 -0600, andy <andre…@despammed.com> wrote: >In January (‘05), I had two procedures; septoplasty and ESS >(specifically, maxillary  antrostomy).  During recovery, I developed a >hole in my septum.  I could hear whistling which prompted me to do a >little more research and found that a hole can cause this.  I can >actually see the perforation; I estimate that it’s a bit smaller in >diameter than a q-tip end (don’t worry, I’m not stuffing q-tips up my >nose for reference).  My ENT thinks there’s a good chance it will heal >on its own and close.  I am VERY sceptical about this. >1) Is it fairly common for a perforation to heal on its own? >2) How do they develop?  Did I do something wrong during recovery, did >the surgeon make a mistake, or is it other factors? >If you have any anecdotal information about these perforations, please >pass it on to me.

It has happened to others here (not me).  I hope they will comment. Meanwhile, I would get a second opinion since the doctor that did the original surgery may be embarrased about it etc.   It may be *very* tricky to fix so I would go to a top specialist.

Response:

  > It has happened to others here (not me).  I hope they will comment.  >  > Meanwhile, I would get a second opinion since the doctor that did the original  > surgery may be embarrased about it etc.  >  > It may be *very* tricky to fix so I would go to a top specialist. Don, Thanks for responding.  I am getting a second opinion for that very reason.  I’ve been searching through some online journals and a few user forums.  As you mention, it looks like fixing a perforated septum isn’t always successful. I stumbled upon this newsgroup when I searched through Google’s groups.   I’m a bit surprised at the fairly low message volume in the a.s.sinusitis group.  Do you know of other similar forums on the internet where I might look for information and ask questions? Thanks again. -andy

Response:

On Tue, 15 Feb 2005 14:09:45 -0600, andy <andre…@despammed.com> wrote: >Thanks for responding.  I am getting a second opinion for that very >reason.  I’ve been searching through some online journals and a few user >forums.  As you mention, it looks like fixing a perforated septum isn’t >always successful.

That is correct.   It may not be that bad to live with it if it comes to that – I’m not saying it will….. >I stumbled upon this newsgroup when I searched through Google’s groups. >  I’m a bit surprised at the fairly low message volume in the >a.s.sinusitis group.  Do you know of other similar forums on the >internet where I might look for information and ask questions?

No – this is *the* place.   We get maybe 10 posts a day. There have been quiote a few  posts on septal perforation in the past if you search them out. P.S.  Someone emailed me the following: "If you’re near NYC, Dr. Robert Lebovics is a fine ENT who is well experienced with septum holes"

Response:

Filed under: Sinusitis surgery

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