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Techniques for Turbinate Cautery

The human nose contains structures that act as filters to clean and humidify air. Those structures, known as turbinates, create problems when they become enlarged and do not shrink back down. They obstruct the airways, causing breathing problems while awake and asleep. Cautery is a surgical procedure to reduce the size of the turbinates.

  1. Anatomy

    • The nose contains three separate turbinate structures; inferior, middle and superior. Inflammation from allergies or a cold causes the structures to enlarge. When they stay enlarged and do not return to their original shape it becomes a condition known as turbinate hypertrophy. Several treatments exist for the condition including drugs, steroids and surgery. As a surgical alternative, cautery involves certain techniques for shrinking turbinates.

    Interior Surgery

    • Turbinate cautery does not involve cutting on the outside of the nose. All of the work takes place inside the nostril. The surgeon uses an endoscope, a lighted tube that is thin enough to enter the nostril. This device provides the necessary light for the surgeon along with magnification of the enlarged turbinate.

    Burning

    • The term "cautery" refers to the fact that the surgery relies on the technique of burning away the excess tissue. It employs the use of an electrosurgical probe or laser to produce the heat necessary. Use of a laser involves temperatures from 1,400 degrees to 1,700 degrees Fahrenheit, or 750 to 900 degrees Celsius, that vaporize the enlarged tissue. The burning of the tissue produces bleeding, which is a risk of the procedure and also part of the recovery process.

    Recovery

    • Surgeons use techniques in surgical recovery that are essential to a good result. For turbinate cautery, a main concern is bleeding and nasal blockage following surgery. A technique for the bleeding problem is a procedure called "packing," which involves filling the nose with gauze. This gauze, which will have some type of antibiotics, prevents excessive bleeding and infection. Applications of nasal sprays or medicines help with nasal blockage but true relief takes time as the nose heals itself.

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