PHX Reporter

• Almost 29 million people in the U.S. suffer from chronic sinusitis.

• Balloon sinuplasty is less invasive, carries and a lower risk and has a shorter recovery period than traditional sinus surgery.

• Average recovery time for a balloon sinuplasty patient is one to two days.

According to Dr. John Stewart of Arizona Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers, balloon sinuplasty is minimally invasive, especially compared with older methods of addressing sinus problems.

Chronic sinusitis affects 28.9 million adults, which is 11% of the population, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sinusitis is responsible for 4.1 million doctor visits and more than 230,000 emergency room visits eacher year, the CDC reported.

"In the old days, it was a seek-and-destroy type of procedure," he told PHX Reporter. "They went in roughshod and really invaded and destroyed all of the sinuses and tried to create these gigantic cavities. We found that if you just enhance the natural anatomy to its maximum, you get much better results, much faster recovery, and much more satisfied patients. The anatomy is not altered; the openings are. We dilate them and open them with little balloons, and nothing's been destroyed, nothing's been removed and the [patients] recover well."

Sinusitis can also have a negative affect on quality of life, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). NCBI compared patients who underwent functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) with patients who underwent balloon sinuplasty to treat chronic sinusitis. According to the study, both procedures are effective, but balloon sinuplasty patients needed fewer antibiotic treatment after their procedures, NCBI said. 

A balloon sinuplasty is "less traumatic" because FESS actually involves removing sinus tissue, whereas balloon sinuplasty instead relies on dilation to improve sinus function.  

"In the old surgeries, everything was sort of gutted out of the sinuses and it was just one giant cavity," Stewart said. "We find that [balloon sinuplasty] is the way to go nowadays. It's a fast procedure. It can be done with local and topical anesthetics. It's a comfortable procedure and it's a fast recovery. It works really well."

A balloon sinuplasty procedure lasts 10 to 15 minutes, and patients usually recover within one to two days, according to Dr. Bradley Eisemann of the Eisemann Plastic Surgery Center. Most patients are able to resume their usual activities quickly, although they might experience some swelling for up to a week. 

By contrast, FESS procedures can take one and a half to two hours, and patients might need up to four weeks to recover, after which they have to avoid strenuous activities like exercise.

 If you're interested in learning more about diagnosis or treatment of chronic sinusitis, please this this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.