[Cocoline Clinic Column] Do You Often Have a Stuffy Nose? Then You May Want to Suspect Turbinate Hypertrophy!

Hello, this is Cocoline Clinic, where you can receive treatment directly from an otolaryngology specialist.

Is your nose healthy during the seasonal transition?

Everyone, is your nasal health okay during the seasonal transition?

As the full seasonal transition approaches, the temperature difference grows and the weather becomes unpredictable, bringing back the season when rhinitis patients suffer quite a bit.

As the temperature difference starts to appear, some people with weaker bronchial tubes may feel swelling inside the nose or experience nasal congestion.

Around this time of year, the most common thing people say when visiting Cocoline Clinic is, "It feels stuffy, like the flesh inside my nose is swollen."

Today, I’d like to talk about turbinate hypertrophy, a symptom caused by irritation from external environmental factors.

Before reading the column, here is a term that may be helpful to know

Nasal valve: The passage through which our breathing goes in and out; simply put, you can think of it as the airway.

Turbinate: A shell-shaped bone that forms the inside of the nose (the pink area in the image above)

What is turbinate hypertrophy? Turbinate hypertrophy refers to a condition in which the turbinate inside the nose becomes abnormally enlarged due to external environmental factors (temperature or various irritating factors), causing nasal congestion, and it is one of the conditions commonly known as rhinitis.

Do you really need to treat rhinitis?

Yes, the biggest symptom of rhinitis is nasal congestion. Because it becomes difficult to breathe properly and to breathe through the nose, people naturally end up breathing through the mouth.

Did you know that continued mouth breathing can cause not only malocclusion but also changes in facial structure?

I mentioned that turbinate hypertrophy is one of the symptoms of rhinitis. Rhinitis includes not only turbinate hypertrophy, but also various other cases such as a deviated septum and nasal valve stenosis.

In addition, many rhinitis patients have multiple conditions at the same time, so if you are considering definitive treatment through surgery, the best approach is to consult directly with an otolaryngology specialist.

Also, breathing through the mouth can lead not only to breathing problems but also to sleep disorders and, further, respiratory problems such as pneumonia, so proper treatment is absolutely necessary.

Can rhinitis surgery (functional surgery) and nose surgery (cosmetic surgery) be done together? Of course, they can be done together.

While rhinitis surgery corrects the structure and function of the nose, cosmetic surgery can be performed at the same time to adjust the height and shape of the nasal line.

(I will write an additional column soon about why it is good to have them done together!)

In addition, if you have not previously undergone rhinitis reimbursement surgery, you can receive reimbursement after rhinitis surgery through the actual expense insurance you are enrolled in.

You can resolve both rhinitis and cosmetic concerns at a reasonable cost.

(Cosmetic surgery is not eligible for insurance reimbursement. Also, actual reimbursement eligibility and reimbursement rates may vary depending on the policy you are enrolled in, so please contact and confirm with your insurance company’s customer service center.)

Apgujeong Cocoline Clinic Cocoline Clinic has focused solely on nose surgery in Apgujeong for more than 10 years, with pride in our expertise. If you are considering surgery for a safe and beautiful nose,

we recommend preparing in a systematic and safe way through in-depth consultation with Kim Seon-gu, the representative director of Cocoline Clinic.

Cocoline Clinic accepts reservations for a limited number of patients each day in order to provide high-quality consultations and premium service.

If you have a preferred consultation date or surgery date, please contact the clinic and we will kindly help you with the consultation.

Cocoline Clinic always places the safety and health of our patients first, so we never plan or pressure patients into forceful consultations or unnecessary surgery.

Because surgery is something that should be chosen carefully above all else, we recommend that you think it over 충분히, consider it carefully, and decide only after giving it more thought.

If you need advice from a specialist or expert regarding surgery, please feel free to contact Cocoline Clinic at any time :)

We will always be here, quietly waiting for you.

Thank you.