March 1, 2023

Latera Nasal Implant

What Is Latera?

Most of us don’t think about the action of breathing through our noses, yet this involuntary action serves many crucial purposes. Nasal breathing protects oral health, filters toxins, humidifies nasal passages, and produces nitric oxide to help widen blood vessels.

In fact, it provides more than 70% of the airflow to your lungs. Breathing through your nose even triggers a part of your parasympathetic nervous system that promotes reset by slowing down your heart rate and digestion. A deep inhale from your nose can make you feel more relaxed.

If you’re one of the estimated 20 million Americans who suffer from nasal obstructions that restrict your ability to breathe through your nose each year, you certainly don’t take that action for granted.

Fortunately, there are treatment options. The Latera implant is an FDA-approved treatment for nasal obstruction caused by internal nasal valve collapse. Latera is an absorbable, clear implant made of polylactic acid. It is thinner than a pin and about one inch in length. A doctor can insert Latera into your nose during a 30-minute minimally-invasive procedure.

Once it’s in place, the device supports the upper and lower cartilage in the side of your nose, which makes it easier for you to breathe. Your doctor can perform the Latera procedure in their office while you are awake, using just local anesthesia.

If nasal valve collapse has made breathing through your nose a daily struggle, chat with us to find an ENT near you who offers the Latera implant and can tell you whether it's a good fit.

What Is Nasal Obstruction?

Also known as nasal blockage, a nasal obstruction occurs anytime your nasal passages are blocked or you have difficulty breathing through your nose. Nasal obstruction is not an actual disease but a symptom of an underlying cause. It can affect one or both nostrils.

Your doctor can diagnose nasal obstruction through a nasal endoscopy, which is when they insert a thin, lighted scope with a camera to look into your nasal passages. Other diagnostic options include nasal X-rays, CT scans, or MRIs. You might feel blocked, stuffy, or congested if you have a nasal obstruction.

For many people the symptoms of nasal obstruction are temporary. For others, it is a chronic problem that can severely impact their quality of life with the resulting headaches, difficulty sleeping, a runny nose, postnasal drip, or facial pain or pressure. It can also cause a nasal voice, tooth decay, bad breath, and make breathing difficult when exercising.

What Are the Main Causes of Nasal Obstruction?

Nasal obstruction can be caused by a structural abnormality in the nose, which causes chronic complications, or because of inflammation and swelling of the nasal passages, which can be temporary or chronic.

Temporary nasal obstruction is caused by a cold, hay fever, or other allergies caused by dust mites, mold, pet dander, or pollen. Swelling and irritation of the nasal cavities or sinus cavities because of infection can further narrow the nasal passage and result in nasal obstruction. A temporary nasal blockage can also be caused by:

• Environmental irritants, such as smoke, car exhaust, or paint fumes.
• A sinus infection which can inflame your sinuses and cause fluid buildup, leading to congestion and a runny nose.
• Certain medications, including ibuprofen and high blood pressure medications such as beta blockers.
• Acute sinusitis from a bacterial infection in your nasal passages.
• Overusing nasal decongestant sprays.
• Short-term seasonal or perennial allergy.

A common cause of chronic nasal obstruction is nasal valve collapse. This is where the sidewall of the front of the nose either collapses when you breathe in quickly (like during exercise) or is always collapsed on one or both sides. Another cause of obstruction is nasal valve stenosis where the actual nasal passage is too small on one or both sides. The septum is the cartilage wall between your nostrils. If you have a deviated septum, the bone or cartilage in your nose is displaced to one side and can make the nasal passage more narrow.

When that occurs, the narrow part of the airway in your nose can weaken and collapse inward, affecting one or both sides of your nose and obstructing your breathing. Aging can worsen a deviated septum over time.

Your doctor can help you figure out whether nasal valve collapse is contributing to your nasal airway obstruction with the following measures:

• Performing a Cottle Maneuver by gently pulling on one side of your cheek to temporarily open your nasal valve. If doing this helps you breathe more easily through your nose, the nasal obstruction is mostly at the valve.
• Utilizing nasal strips during strenuous activities and while sleeping to see if this gives you temporary relief.

If your symptoms improve from either of those, you may benefit from the support of the lateral nasal wall with a Latera nasal implant.

Other causes of chronic nasal obstruction include:

• Choanal Atresia - a rare congenital narrowing of the back of the nasal cavity, which can cause nasal blockage and difficulty breathing. This would be something you are born with and would be diagnosed when you are a baby.
• Nasal Polyps - soft, painless, noncancerous growths on the inside of your nasal passages. If they grow large enough, they can cause nasal blockage.
• Adenoid Enlargement - lymph tissue in your upper airway between your nose and the back of your throat. If the tissue becomes swollen, it can obstruct your nasal airways.
• Nasal Tumors - A nasal blockage that doesn’t resolve on its own could also be caused by these growths.
• Enlarged Turbinates - structures on each side of your nose that clean and humidify air as it passes through your nostrils. If they become enlarged, it can make it difficult to breathe.

How Long Does Latera Last? Is it Permanent?

Latera is a non-permanent implant. The Latera nasal implant is absorbed into your nose over about 18 months. While there, it supports and opens the lateral nasal wall, keeps your airway unobstructed, and stimulates collagen growth.

After it has dissolved over two years, it leaves behind the additional structure to support the upper and lower cartilage inside the side of your nose, allowing you to breathe more easily.

What Are the Benefits of Latera?

Septoplasty is the traditional form of surgery used to treat a deviated septum but this does always help with nasal valve obstruction. In this surgery, your doctor would straighten or change the shape of your nasal septum to treat the symptoms of nasal obstruction. It can be performed endoscopically or as an open surgical procedure if necessary. Other options to improve nasal valve obstruction involve harvesting donor cartilage from another location, like the ear, and implanting it in the lateral wall of the nose.

Lastly, there are nasal dilators to treat nasal obstruction caused from nasal valve collapse. Nasal dilators are strips that you wear on the side of your nose. However, these strips are not always effective. They can fall off or irritate the skin on your nose, and because most people wear them only at night, they don’t provide any daytime relief for symptoms of nasal obstruction.

Latera benefits you at all times of the day. And unlike septoplasty and other invasive surgical techniques, the Latera procedure is minimally invasive. Because of this, the average patient will only have one to two days of downtime after the Latera procedure and can get back to more normal activity after that.

In addition, Latera implants have been shown to drastically improve day-to-day life for those who suffer from nasal obstruction due to nasal valve collapse. While full symptom improvement can take up to four to six weeks, you are likely to notice some relief in the first week. Latera can reduce nasal obstruction, make it easier for you to breathe while exercising or sleeping, and can correct structural problems in your nose without changing its appearance.

A clinical study showed that:

• 57.7% of patients had reduced nasal obstruction symptoms at two years.
• Nine out of 10 were satisfied with the procedure.
• Nine out of 10 were satisfied with their breathing after the procedure.
• Nine out of 10 were satisfied with their appearance after the procedure.

What Are the Risks and Side Effects of Latera?

Risks and possible side effects of the Latera nasal implant include temporary symptoms such as mild bruising and inflammation, awareness of the implant, and mild pain or irritation. Other risks related to Latera are mild discomfort, infection, reaction to the material, and surgical implant removal.

Talk to Your Doctor About the Latera Nasal Implant

Speak with your doctor if you have chronic nasal obstruction. They can meet with you to determine if it is caused by nasal valve stenosis and if you are a good candidate for the Latera procedure. There’s no reason you should suffer from difficulty sleeping and exercising, or a chronic stuffy and blocked nose. Breathe easy, knowing there is a minimally-invasive treatment for nasal obstruction.