Tonsillectomy and Septoplasty done together?

[hunter6009]

I am trying to find information on having a tonsillectomy and a septoplasty done at the same time. Has anyone had both of these procedures done together? I have mild sleep apnea, and a deviated septum. My ENT says that he has only done these two procedures together on one other patient and she was miserable for 3 weeks. I'm really not sure if I should do just the septoplasty alone, the septoplasty and tonsillectomy together, or the septoplasty now and the tonsillectomy at a later date. I have very mild apnea (an RDI of 8.8) and a mean O2 of 97%. I can hardly breathe out of my right nostril. I do not get strep or tonsillitis, but occasionally my tonsils will swell. My breath can sometimes smell from food particles in my tonsils, as well. I have a lot of fatigue during the day and after sleeping 8 hours, I still wake up tired. I have a son and I really want to have the energy to last all day with him. If I do the surgeries seperate, then I have to be put under anesthesia twice, have 2 hospital stays, and double billing to insurance (and me). If I do them together, I might be doing a surgery that was unnessary (the tonsillectomy), will have to take a lot of time off of work, and will be in intense pain for up to 3 weeks. I am also deeply concerned about the minimal risk of losing my sense of taste and the sensation of taste. My ENT said this was rare, but it seems that people on this website have experienced it much more frequently than "rarely".
Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[hunter6009]

Anyone? I have to schedule surgery soon!
Thanks!

[peteyby]

Hi Hunter - I did mine separately and my advice would be to get it done in one shot, this way you don't have to go through it again (plus doctor's prefer this method - no need to put a patient through 2 surgeries when it can be done with one).

You will need a minimum of 2 weeks to recover and a good 3-4 to feel back to normal (don't rush yourself either - do little by little when you feel better). The septoplasty will work wonders for your nasal breathing (I had a severe deviation to the right and now I can finally breathe through my nose). My tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy and uvula re-constructure were done 6 weeks ago, so the ruling is still out on that (after the septoplasty my tonsil infections got worse, I guess all of the stuff stuck in my nose found a new home in my tonsils, so I am sure that this surgery will help with that) But one thing I can say is - I definitely don't snore anymore and I feel more rested - so I guess my sleep apnea has subsided.

But you are correct - be clear on what can go wrong and discuss it thoroughly with your doctor. I see that you read through our other thread and yes I am having a complication with my taste after my second surgery, so I think it is a valid concern you have and an important discussion you need to have with your doctor.

Best of luck!

-- Pete

[Goldenfawn]

Hunter...

I had the nose and tonsils done at the same time. The only drawback I've found is in recoup and figuring out which complication is from which part of the procedure...lol

Post op it sucks cause you can't breath through your nose so you breath threw you mouth which sucks with your throat being sore.

other then that I don't think having both done would be any worse the having them done one at a time...I have three kids and think it's just easier to but them through it once instead of twice.

Let me know if you have any specific questions

Golden

[anasazii]

Has anyone gone through this recently?
I just had both done on Friday...wondered if I was on track w/where I should be on day 5. Also, how long recovery is expected. My doctor told me 2 weeks, but I'm quite skeptical of that estimate.

Janel