Balloon Sinuplasty is a Food & Drug Administration (FDA) cleared technique used by doctors to help sufferers of sinusitis. Sinusitis is a very common problem that affects around 37 million Americans each year. Sinusitis is an infection or inflammation of the passages that drain each of the sinuses around the nose and eyes. Sufferers of sinusitis can have debilitating headaches, facial pain and nasal congestion.
Balloon Sinuplasty is hailed as the middle ground between medication and surgery. It is a simple outpatient surgery that requires general anesthesia. Doctors begin by threading a guide wire catheter into the nostrils and up into the blockage. The catheter is equipped with a tiny balloon, which is inflated to about a quarter of an inch once inside the passage. The balloon is inflated just enough to open the passageway. Once the passageway is open, the balloon is deflated and withdrawn.
The positive side to Balloon Sinuplasty is that there are no incisions or cutting and therefore no bruising or swelling. Instead of cutting, the balloon fractures the bones and spreads them apart, allowing the sinuses to be drained. The only negative point doctors can see is that, because the brain is in close proximity to the sinuses, there may be a slight risk of injury. The frontal sinus is particularly challenging to ear, nose and throat surgeons.
The number of doctors around the country trained to perform Balloon Sinuplasty are increasing rapidly. Research is beginning to track the effectiveness of Balloon Sinuplasty and to determine who would be a good candidate for the operation. Balloon Sinuplasty will not completely eradicate the need for surgery. Many sinusitis sufferers have growths called polyps that the balloon can't get rid of. The balloon will not fit into every sinus, and severe sufferers may have bone inflammation that must be removed, not just pushed aside.
Nevertheless, Balloon Sinuplasty is hailed as the most exciting medical advance in the ear, nose and throat field in the last 15 years. The number of sufferers who can benefit from this type of operation is huge. Unlike the one time painful surgical operation, Sinuplasty may have to be repeated, but sinusitis sufferers have said that they would rather have a Balloon Sinuplasty five times than go through the more painful surgery once. With sinusitis causing sufferers pain for months on end, Sinuplasty could finally offer a way to end those painful sinuses.
Sinuplasty and Balloon Sinuplasty are the exclusive property of Acclarent, Inc. and may not be used without Acclarent, Inc.'s written consent.