The nose and mouth are incredibly complex areas of the body. To you, they're three holes in your head to breathe, smell and eat with. But, to an Otolaryngologist or ENT doctor, they're a wonderland of cavities, turbinates, the pharynx, palate and much more.

When you're not breathing freely or sleeping well, you're caught in a cycle of pharmacy visits and temporary sprays, pills and tissues. You have a front row seat to the appearance of your nose and mouth and an idea of how to find relief, but the inner workings of your nose, mouth and throat are left to questions without any answers.

At ADVENT, the first step in determining the root cause of your sinus and sleep concerns is assessing the inaccessible anatomy of your nose and throat, or The Breathing Triangle® evaluation. This evaluation is known in the medical field as a nasolaryngoscopy.

How a Nasolaryngoscopy Works

A nasolaryngoscopy is performed in-office by inserting a tiny, lighted camera on a soft, flexible fiber-scope, or nasolaryngoscope, and passed through the nose and into the throat.

What happens during a Nasolaryngoscopy?

While the procedure is completely painless, a numbing agent is applied to throat and nose to minimize any discomfort. No additional preparation is needed other than a tissue in hand for any subsequent sneezing or coughing. You will be completely awake during the nasolaryngoscopy.

The nurse practitioner or physician assistant administering the procedure will insert the nasolaryngoscope into the right or left nostril, passing through the nasal cavity, and down to the throat, illuminating the nose, nasopharynx, larynx and hypopharynx. The evaluation will then be repeated through the opposite nostril.

While the nasolaryngoscope is inserted, your provider will instruct you to breathe normally and to communicate any intolerance to the evaluation. Following the evaluation, you will be able to talk and breathe normally.

What can the Nasolaryngoscopy detect?

While some of the symptoms you're experiencing may be obvious, the underlying cause may not. With a nasolaryngoscopy, your provider may detect any of the following root causes:

• Chronic sinusitis
• Chronic rhinitis
• Allergies
• Trauma
• Nosebleeds
• Nodules
• Polyps

The detection of these underlying issues is critical to establishing a proper care plan. Following the nasolaryngoscopy or The Breathing Triangle® evaluation, your provider can make the best recommendation for next steps and getting you back on track to living better.