Turbinate Reduction

The turbinates are the shelves of tissue on the side walls inside the nose. They warm, moisten and clean the air you breathe. They are not a defect. The nose needs them.

Turbinates swell for a reason: allergy, long-standing inflammation, a crooked septum that makes the other side work harder, or long use of a decongestant spray. When they stay swollen, the passage narrows and you cannot breathe through the nose.

The complaints they cause

• A blocked nose, often worse at night or when you lie down
• Breathing through the mouth, and a dry mouth on waking
• Snoring and broken sleep
• A reduced sense of smell
• Headache and pressure in the face

Treatment before surgery

The doctor first treats the cause. Allergy is treated with nasal steroid spray and with antihistamines. If a decongestant spray caused the swelling, you stop it. Many patients need nothing more.

Surgery comes when the turbinate stays swollen after full medical treatment.

How the reduction is done

The aim is to make the turbinate smaller while keeping it working. The surgeon never removes it completely. A nose without turbinates dries, crusts and stops cleaning the air, and that damage cannot be undone.

The surgeon reduces the turbinate with radiofrequency, with laser or with cautery, or removes part of the tissue under the lining and leaves the lining in place. The method depends on how large the turbinate is and on what makes it large.

The procedure takes 15 to 30 minutes. It is often done together with septoplasty, because a crooked septum and a swollen turbinate usually appear together. Most patients go home the same day.

After the procedure

Breathing improves over two to three weeks, as the swelling from the procedure settles. Rinse your nose with salt water during that time. Do not blow your nose in the first days. Use the spray the doctor prescribes.