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“Plenty of people are simply unaware that their chronic conditions can be treated in the office depending on the severity of their disease,” said Dr. Rivera. “There’s no longer a need to suffer from annoying runny, stuffed up and irritated nasal passages. Our patients have enjoyed excellent results from these procedures.” According to Dr. Foster, most people try to solve their nasal and sinus problems by using over the counter remedies and rely on the help of treatments from urgent care centers and primary care physicians. “When these remedies are not sufficient, patients often do not know where to turn or how to alleviate their symptoms,” he said. “In the past, chronic nasal and sinus problems would potentially require invasive surgeries with general anesthesia and often significant downtime with lengthy recoveries. “Thanks to advances in technology, however, today we can offer our patients minimally-invasive interventions that provide relief from common chronic conditions with less risk and minimal down time.” Dr. Rivera stresses that common symptoms of sinusitis, such as an inflamed nose, sinuses and throat, lasting more than three months are cause for concern and medical intervention. “Anything that obstructs the air-filled pockets located behind the facial bones surrounding the nose can lead to a buildup of mucus, infection, and inflammation causing significant discomfort,” he said. “We offer several treatment options to our patients, depending on their individual conditions.” South Florida ENT offers the following procedures: Balloon Sinuplasty When patient’s sinus passages are blocked and medicine alone has failed, sinus surgery, performed under general anesthesia. would have been traditionally required. More recently, a minimally invasive procedure, that can be done in the office, is designed to unblock and dilate the sinus openings. Balloon sinuplasty was created for patients suffering from chronic sinusitis, this is a minimally invasive procedure conducted with local anesthesia. Inflamed sinuses are unblocked in a way similar to the method used by cardiologists to open up blocked arteries using balloon angioplasty. Sinuses remain open after the procedure allowing for the return of normal drainage, and, most important, sinus pressure relief. “For patients who want to avoid general anesthesia and the downtime required for healing after traditional sinus surgery, office dilation is a great option,” said Dr.Foster. This three-step process involves inserting a balloon catheter into the inflamed sinus, then inflating the balloon to expand that opening. Any infection or fluid in the sinus is then suctioned out. The system is removed during the final step, leaving the sinuses open. This treatment method is recommended for patients who have failed to get relief from medications. This procedure involves the use of a navigation system that safely guides the