Tonsillectomy WITHOUT General Anesthesia Using Only Local Anesthesia

I always thought that tonsillectomy can only be performed under general anesthesia. I was wrong... In some countries even now, awake tonsillectomy is routinely performed using only local anesthesia. There has even been some papers written on this topic which I was not aware of until now. According to one 2018 paper , a local anesthetic tonsillectomy without general anesthesia is performed the following way: ...cold steel method of dissection, using tonsillar snare at the inferior tonsill…

Continue Reading

Blood Thinner Use and Sino-Nasal Surgery (Septum and Sinus Surgery)

Cross-Section showing relationship of septum, sinus, eye, and brain There is an active abhorrence between blood thinner medications and ENT surgeons. Not only do blood thinners markedly increase risk of nosebleeds which often require nasal packing   (even without surgery), but it can complicate any type of sino-nasal surgery, particularly septoplasty and sinus surgery . With septoplasty or sinus surgery (collectively called sino-nasal surgery), not only is the nasal mucosa actively c…

Continue Reading

Does Tonsil Removal Negatively Effect a Person's Body/Immune System?

Tonsils are basically lymph nodes that are on the surface (of the mouth) where they can be seen. Most lymph nodes are located under the skin where they can be felt, but not directly visualized. As such, tonsils are part of the body's immune system which helps to guard against infections. Indeed, tonsils are known to produce antibodies. So this begs the question of what adverse effects may result from tonsil removal ? If there are any negative effects, how severely is it impacted? What p…

Continue Reading

Why Is Eustachian Tube Balloon Dilation to Treat Eustachian Tube Dysfunction Slow to Catch On?

Eustachian tube dysfunction  is a phenomenon whereby a person is unable to  pop their ears  to relieve symptoms of ear pressure, clogging, or fullness. It is much akin to the ear pressure a person experiences when flying, but at ground level. Traditionally, treatment of this condition involved medications like steroid nasal sprays and prednisone along with active valsalva (watch video below). Once medical treatment has failed,  ear tube placement  has been the step of last resort. However,…

Continue Reading