Septoplasty and Balloon Sinuplasty Under Local Anesthesia - risks?

Question

I'm having both done (at the same time) here in the next few weeks. I've never had any type of surgery before, and I'm a little nervous about having this done under local anesthesia (and oral sedatives). I read some of the discussions on this site regarding local vs. general, and it seems the consensus is that general is the preferred. My biggest concern isn't necessarily being awake for the procedure, but rather possible risks associated. Any feedback on this would be greatly appreciated.

Fred J. Bressler, MD, FACS · Answer

You raise an important question regarding the relative risks to a patient undergoing multiple procedures for functional nasal and sinus correction. Local cases involving multiple procedures can be safe, however, my standard practice is to perform surgery under general anesthesia in a fully accredited ambulatory surgery center or outpatient hospital operating room. This way, if heaven forbid, a problem were to occur, i.e. abnormal nasal bleeding, difficulty with breathing or airway, cardiac arrhythmia, problems with high or low blood pressure etc., my patient would have the benefits of an outstanding professional team of doctors and nurses to help rectify the situation while still asleep. As this is your first surgery ever, it is natural to have some anxiety about the surgery and your relative safety. Though you will find multiple educated and honest opinions advocating for local anesthesia when performing a balloon and septoplasty together, I suggest you opt for a general. I hope this answer helps.

William Portuese, MD · Answer

For patient safety and comfort, we recommend sinus surgery and septoplasty under general anesthesia to avoid any complications. It is also  very difficult to  perform these procedures under local anesthesia, since the patient simply cannot tolerate  the injections and the surgery.

Robert S. Schmidt, MD · Answer

Thanks for your question. I routinely perform septoplasty surgery and sinus surgery in the same session. You risk having some trouble with scarring when you combine procedures, but this way you only have to deal with having surgery and the recovery once. I have had balloon sinuplasty with local anesthesia. It's not the best experience, but it's not terrible either. The injections hurt, but after you're numb it's not that big a deal. I've had a LOT fewer sinus infections since having the procedure. You're less likely to have scarring problems following balloon surgery than standard endoscopic sinus surgery because of the nature of the work.For a septoplasty, I only do them under general anesthesia because of the chance of bleeding and wanting to be sure you stay safe. I guess it would depend on how much work you needed done and the location of the deviation. Your doctor wouldn't have recommended it if they didn't think it was safe. Good luck!

Septoplasty and Balloon Sinuplasty Under Local Anesthesia - risks?

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Septoplasty and Balloon Sinuplasty Under Local Anesthesia - risks?

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Everything you need to know about Septoplasty

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