Preventing complications in nasal and sinus surgery is essential for comprehensive otolaryngologists. Despite advances, intraoperative injuries can impact recovery, quality of life, and surgeon confidence. This session provides a practical, step-by-step approach to reducing risk in endoscopic sinus surgery and septoplasty through: (1) risk assessment and preoperative planning (systematic CT review, medical optimization, and identification of anatomic challenges); (2) intraoperative “course correction” to prevent small deviations from becoming major complications; and (3) error management, including early recognition and surgical management of common injuries (epistaxis, cerebrospinal fluid leak etc.).
Learning Objectives:
Decrease risk of intraoperative complications in ESS and septoplasty through appropriate patient selection, risk stratification, and preoperative planning using systematic CT review.
Recognize impending errors during surgery to correct course and pre-empt complications
Apply complication-management strategies, including repair techniques (e.g., skull base repair, septal perforation prevention/repair) and hemorrhage control (e.g., SPA ligation/escalation pathways).
