Recovery Time: Septoplasty, Turbinectomy and Endoscopic Sinus Surgery at the Same Time?

Septoplasty, turbinate reduction, and endoscopic sinus surgery are often combined together.  Most patients will have minimal external swelling and it may take up to 6 months for the full airway passage to realize its new potential.  Septoplasty can have a variable amount of recovery depending on what type of changes were made to the septum.  A classic submucosal resection of the septum (more than 90% of septoplasty procedures fall into this category) typically has minimal downtime with up to 6 months of intranasal swelling.  Other variants of septoplasty including open septoplasty and septal reconstruction may have longer periods of external swelling to the nose.  Turbinectomy is less commonly performed as it may lead to dryness in the nose.  Reduction of the turbinate bone without reduction in the mucosa is often a more conservative step and is much less likely to lead to dryness.Exercise requirements vary from surgeon to surgeon and consider asking your surgeon about specifics.  We employ a gradual increase in exercise over a period of 4 weeks.

Exercise after this procedure is to prevent a significant nose bleed.  Waiting about 2 weeks after surgery would include all activities which would significantly increase the heartrate and blood pressure.  One does continue to see improved results after these procedures for weeks to months.

 It is very common place to perform those procedures together in our practice. Expect  2 weeks of down time from the surgery and probably an additional week of no strenuous exercises like running, to prevent a nose bleed. Please refer to the sinus surgery booklet we developed for patients undergoing  septoplasty and endoscopic sinus surgery

Some patients will be able to return to a sedentary job about 1 week following surgery. You should follow you surgeon's advice with regard to abstaining from any exercise for 2 weeks. Increasing your blood pressure and heart rate during the first 2 weeks after surgery will increase your risk of bleeding. Best wishes.