Former NFL running back Marshall Faulk carved his legacy tearing through defenses on his way to the end zone.
Unbeknownst to most, the Super Bowl XXXIV champion and 2011 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee played defense against his irritating postnasal drip, which he said would bother him when he worked in front of the camera following the conclusion of his storied 13-year career.
The 48-year-old Faulk, who was taken second out of San Diego State University by the Indianapolis Colts in the 1994 NFL draft, admitted to seeking relief from numerous home remedies to no avail, until he underwent a balloon sinuplasty.
“If I was at work, broadcasting, I started having severe postnasal drip,” he said in a YouTube video posted by Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health. “I tell them balloon sinuplasty is a must.”
Also known as balloon catheter dilation surgery, balloon sinuplasty is a procedure used to unclog blocked sinuses, which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved in 2005.
This minimally invasive, in-office procedure is often recommended to patients who suffer from chronic sinusitis when other home remedies prove unsuccessful, according to Healthline.
Most people who've had a balloon sinuplasty report few complications, as it involves no cutting. Because it’s a type of sinus surgery, however, the likelihood of some risk is present.
“It’s crazy that it was a simple procedure to get done, to fix something that I struggled with for a long time,” Faulk said in the video. “Not a lot of recovery time... I’m capable of breathing; it was an easy decision.”
He added that had he known about balloon sinuplasty earlier, he would’ve elected to have the procedure a long time ago.
Dr. Brian Lee and the team at Scottsdale Sinus and Allergy Center offer balloon dilation as a first line of defense for patients like Faulk, who struggle with sinusitis getting in the way of living their life.
If you are interested in evaluating your sinus symptoms and are considering seeing a doctor, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.