Septum is the wall inside your nose separating the right and the left nostrils which are two passage ways of equal size. Septum is made up of cartilage tissues and bony tissues. When the septum is displaced from the center or crooked it is known as deviated septum. A deviated septum may be presented at the time of birth itself or might have been displaced slowly during growth period or a sudden blow or injury might have displaced it. A deviated septum does not generally show any symptoms. Difficulty in breathing through nose, nasal congestion, sinus infections, headache, sleep problems etc is some of the minor symptoms that accompany deviated septum.
Treatment options for deviated septum depend on the severity of the symptoms exhibited and the extent of the deviation. It is better to follow conservative treatment options like medicated sprays or saline nasal rinses in the initial stage, which can help to clear the nasal congestion and clear the passages. Nasal strips can be used to open the passages. For major symptoms like sleep apnea, chronic infection etc surgical intervention is the only solution. This procedure involves cutting away and removing a portion of the septum which is crooked. Several studies conducted in this field have shown that surgery can give much relief to the patients by improving the nasal flow and the quality of life. Most of the surgeries in this regard have given satisfactory results, but it cannot be denied that in some cases the symptoms have persisted even after the surgery.
As surgical procedure can be risky also, it is better to have a detailed discussion with your doctor about the possibilities of the outcome of the surgical procedures, if you have not got any benefits from the conventional treatment options.
Septoplasty is the surgical procedure followed for rectifying the deviation in the septum. In this procedure the linings on both the sides of the septum are raised and the realignment of the septum is done. After this the linings are replaced with necessary stitches to help faster healing. Nasal splints are also placed in the nose to speed up the healing process.