Litchfield Hills Today

• Pro golfer Bryson DeChambeau began experiencing dizzy spells at the 2020 Masters.
• After meeting with an ENT specialist, DeChambeau learned that his vertigo was caused by a blocked nasal passage. 
• After sinus surgery, DeChambeau found that his dizziness went away, his thoughts were clearer, he could speak better and his energy levels were higher.

DeChambeau began experiencing dizzy spells in November 2020, and after almost two years of trying to figure out the cause, he underwent a full-body scan, according to LIV Golf. The scan found a cyst in DeChambeau's left maxillary sinus, so he met with an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist.

The doctor explained that the cyst was limiting air flow in DeChambeau's nasal passage, which meant he wasn't getting enough oxygen. His low nitric oxide levels were causing his dizzy spells. 

DeChambeau underwent sinus surgery to remove the cyst and improve his nasal passages. For three or four days after the surgery, he had to breathe through his mouth to avoid straining his nose, which he said led to an uncomfortable sore throat. However, after those few days had passed, he said he could breathe properly for the first time in years, and other aspects of his health improved as well. 

“To get that fixed, it’s been the greatest decision of my life,” DeChambeau told LIV Golf. “My energy level is so much better. My clarity of thought is way better. I don’t know if you can tell, but my speech is a lot more fluent and I’m not stopping as much or pitching as much like I used to last year and before. I feel like I’m back to 2018 me.” 

At the beginning of 2018, DeChambeau was ranked 99th, but a series of wins led to him finishing out the year ranked 5th.

Local doctor, Robert Weiss, of CT ENT Sinus Center told Litchfield Hills Today that sinus surgery has become more technologically advanced and less invasive, which means that patients have a much shorter recovery time. 

"With a balloon (sinuplasty), most people go back to work within a day or two and back to their activities," Weiss said. "I have to think back to when I used to do full sinus surgery before the balloon. First, it takes you at least 48 or 72 hours to recover from general anesthesia."

Weiss explains why the old way of doing sinus surgery was much harder on the patient, now that modern choices are available.

"(Traditional sinus surgery) takes its toll, because you're doing more of a destructive process. You're doing surgery on the sinuses, you're removing tissue, removing bone. Many of those patients ended up having packing in their nose, which could stay in for a couple of days. It's uncomfortable while it's in; it's even more uncomfortable coming out. So all those factors add up to a significant experience of not feeling so great. It's going to take still four to six weeks to heal, but I'd say that the initial one to two weeks is rougher when you do a complete set of surgical approaches to the sinuses." 

The inflammation that comes along with chronic sinusitis can cause difficulty concentrating, as well as depression, according to University of Washington School of Medicine. Chronic sinusitis sufferers might also experience lower energy levels, facial pain and pressure, decreased senses of taste and smell, coughing, congestion and nasal discharge, according to Cleveland Clinic.

For more information about the symptoms of sinusitis and allergies, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.