Dr. Seth Linker offers balloon sinuplasty for treatment of sinusitis

WYOMING–LACKAWANNA COUNTIES - Geisinger otolaryngologist, Seth Linker, MD, FACS now offers patients who suffer with chronic sinusitis a safe and effective minimally invasive technique to relieve the symptoms of sinusitis. 
 Balloon sinuplasty technology features soft, flexible devices used through the nostrils to gently open blocked sinuses. It is commonly compared to a cardiac catheter, only it opens sinuses instead of arteries. There is usually no need for uncomfortable nasal packing following the procedure. Although all patients are different and recovery time varies, most people can go back to their normal activities within twenty-four hours.

As of May 2006, only 50 physicians in the United States were trained to perform the procedure. Balloon Sinuplasty was cleared by the FDA in 2005 and offers hope to the approximately thirty-seven million Americans that are affected with sinusitis annually. Previously, only two treatment options existed -medical therapy such as topical nasal steroids and antibiotics or conventional sinus surgery; however hundreds of thousands of patients elect to live with painful sinus conditions.
  Dr Linker sees patients for ear, nose and throat conditions at Geisinger-Lake Scranton and Geisinger-Tunkhannock. He is board certified in otolaryngology, received his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston and completed his residency at the University of Tennessee, Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. He is a member of the American Academy of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery, the American Medical Association, and the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy and, is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
 For more information, call Geisinger Lake Scranton at (570) 342-8500 or Geisinger Tunkhannock at (570) 996-2700 or visit www.geisinger.org.