A second opinion begins with a fresh assessment.
Another operation is not an automatic next step. A review of your current symptoms, prior treatment, nasal endoscopy, and imaging can help distinguish ongoing inflammation from a structural problem. Bring your previous operative report and CT images if available, along with a medication list.
Think about what changed after the first operation. Did breathing improve? Did symptoms ever settle? What now interferes most with sleep, work, or daily life? That history helps frame the discussion.
Why can problems return?
Chronic inflammation may continue after surgery. Polyps can recur, scar tissue can narrow an opening, or disease may remain in a sinus that was not fully addressed. Prior operations also change the landmarks a surgeon uses to navigate the nose.
These possibilities require evaluation rather than assumptions about the earlier operation. Symptoms may also have causes that another sinus procedure would not resolve.
Further reading: Revision Endoscopic Sinus Surgery: Pearls and Pitfalls.
Medical treatment, revision, or both.
Revision surgery means operating on sinuses that have already been treated surgically. When a correctable problem is identified, the plan may involve reopening a narrowed pathway, addressing residual disease, or improving access for ongoing topical care.
For some patients, adjusting medical treatment is more useful. Recurrent nasal polyps may prompt discussion of biologic therapy. The treatment plan should explain what is likely to improve and what may still require long-term management.
Further reading: AAO-HNSF: Surgical Management of Chronic Rhinosinusitis, 2025.
What makes revision different?
Scar tissue and altered anatomy can make revision surgery more complex than a first operation. CT review and, when appropriate, image-guided navigation help the surgeon plan around those changes. Navigation supports surgical judgment; it does not eliminate risk.
Ask which sinuses would be treated and why, what alternatives remain, and how the plan differs from your earlier surgery. Risks include bleeding, infection, recurrent narrowing, persistent symptoms, and injury to nearby structures such as the eye or skull base.
Further reading: Revision Endoscopic Sinus Surgery: Pearls and Pitfalls.
Plan beyond the operation.
A revision procedure still needs a recovery and maintenance plan. Discuss follow-up examinations, rinses and prescribed medication, and the timing of work and exercise. Your instructions depend on the operation, medical history, and how you heal.
Bring any difficulties you had with prior aftercare into the conversation. A plan should be practical for your daily life as well as appropriate for the disease.
Further reading: Mount Sinai: Care after Sinus Surgery.
Arrange a sinus second opinion in Manhattan.
Consultations are at 234 East 85th Street, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10028. When requesting your appointment, mention your previous sinus operation and the reason you are seeking another opinion.
- Ask how to provide the actual CT images as well as the report.
- Bring prior operative and pathology reports if you have them.
- List medications and procedures you have tried, including what helped.
- Confirm insurance participation with the office.
Referring clinicians can use the physician referral page. Patients can call 212-241-9410 or request an appointment through Mount Sinai.