ENT Surgery
Doctors trained in otolaryngology (also known as ENT doctors) can perform both routine care and surgical care. Working with an ENT doctor means working with a professional who can guide you through diagnosis, therapy, medication management and lifestyle changes. If these steps don't help, the same doctor that managed your care can work with you in the surgery room. At MetroHealth, we have a number of talented professionals in our ENT department, and all of them are capable of performing in-depth surgical procedures.
A referral is required for surgery. To find out more about how to prepare for surgery or to make an appointment for a surgery consultation, call 216-778-4391.
These are just a few of the surgical solutions our ENT doctors can provide:
Cancer
Rhinoplasty
Rhinoplasty is surgery to reshape the outside of your nose. Some people call this a "nose job." Sometimes the doctor does both a septoplasty and a rhinoplasty. This is called a septorhinoplasty. These surgeries may be pursued in a closed fashion (i.e., no external incisions) or an open fashion, where a small incision in the columella (the tissue that separates the nostrils) is made and the skin is lifted upward. The incision in the columella is quite small and tends to heal well—it is generally not noticeable. Your physician will choose the approach based on your health and your anatomy.
Septoplasty
The nasal septum divides the nose into two chambers. Normally, the septum is relatively straight, with right and left nasal cavities of similar size. Occasionally, the nasal septum may be severely bent, or deviated, enough to occupy too much of the nasal cavity. A deviated nasal septum may develop as the nose grows, or could result from an injury to the nose.
A deviated nasal septum that interferes with proper function of the nose is corrected by septoplasty—surgery to straighten the septum. Using a headlight or an endoscope, the surgeon makes an incision inside the nose, lifts up the lining of the septum and straightens the deviated areas.
Sinus Surgery
Sinus disease causes a multitude of symptoms, including stuffiness and post-nasal drainage. When therapies such as antibiotics, decongestants, antihistamines and nasal sprays do not help, sinus surgery might be a good solution.
Your doctor can use a small endoscope to see deep inside your nasal cavity. This office procedure, combined with detailed imaging, helps your doctor understand how well your sinuses are working. Those images can also help your doctor plan for surgery.
These same tools are used during sinus surgery. In the operating room, with the image magnified on a TV monitor, the obstructed area can be opened by working through the nose.
Many patients are back to work or school the week following surgery and back to full-time activity within two weeks.
Tonsil and Adenoid Surgery
The tonsils are made up of tissue in the back of the throat on each side. The adenoids are pads of tissue at the back of the nose above the throat. The adenoids can't be seen when you open your mouth because they are behind the soft palate. Both tonsils and adenoids produce antibodies to fight infections, but they are probably only important to babies.
They are usually removed if they become so large that they interfere with breathing, sleeping or swallowing, or if recurrent infections occur.
