Dodmerb Deviated Septum

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gooseblitz

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I have seen the old posts about this. With surgeries ect. My son is not yet Dodmerb Qualified or Disqualifed. He just had Dodmerb physical and they listed that he had deviated septum. This was new news to us. He has never had broken nose or this diagnosis before. Is this an automatic waiver? He has never had issue and ran a sub 6 minute mile. Doesn't effect him and no one has ever mentioned this in a physical.
 
That seems weird. In the context of the exams my boys had, no way they would diagnose a deviated septum.

Can you go see your own ENT for a diagnosis? I don’t know about deviated septums at all, if it can be diagnosed visually, but seems like a specialist would be the one to diagnose that.
 
justdoit19 said:
That seems weird. In the context of the exams my boys had, no way they would diagnose a deviated septum.

Can you go see your own ENT for a diagnosis? I don’t know about deviated septums at all, if it can be diagnosed visually, but seems like a specialist would be the one to diagnose that.
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I am sure I can go that route...hoping I don't have to. He has never had a nose injury plays a ton of sports and tons of physicals and never had this diagnosis. I have seen deviated septum surgery threads where it needed a waiver...hope this isn't automatic waiver.
 
Did you see how he answered his health history questionnaire? It could be related to his answered to questions asked. Just another idea.
 
Not sure about your situation, but we have something similar. DS had surgery to repair a deviated septum in Dec. 2022. DOD standard is 2 years post-surgery, which won't be until this December. So, I assume that is going to be flagged. We have an appointment with the ENT prior to his DOD physical to discuss and hopefully get a letter from doc stating surgery was successful, DS is long since fully healed and has zero ongoing issues. Hoping that if submitted along with the rest of his exam packet, it may not be a big issue, or if waiver needed, Army has the information needed to do so in short order.

Best of luck with your situation! Keep us posted.
 
You may want to reference this thread. There is per a post above a 2 year window of recovery needed for eligibility after surgery. That's a bummer since the surgery and recovery without complications is quick and simple.

From the USNA website on their medical considerations for admission - re: deviated septum. I read this to say he'll need to provide AMI additional medical information if this was identified, to confirm if his airways (either) are impacted for breathing or drainage. He may be at risk for a DQ if a waiver is not granted. But I'm no DODMERB expert- just sharing what I'm reading.

Good luck to all of you working through this.1709147707132.png

So, was his noted to be severe so as to significantly reduce airflow or interfere with drainage of sinus?

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Herman_Snerd said:
You may want to reference this thread. There is per a post above a 2 year window of recovery needed for eligibility after surgery. That's a bummer since the surgery and recovery without complications is quick and simple.

From the USNA website on their medical considerations for admission - re: deviated septum. I read this to say he'll need to provide AMI additional medical information if this was identified, to confirm if his airways (either) are impacted for breathing or drainage. He may be at risk for a DQ if a waiver is not granted. But I'm no DODMERB expert- just sharing what I'm reading.

Good luck to all of you working through this.View attachment 15502

So, was his noted to be severe so as to significantly reduce airflow or interfere with drainage of sinus?

View attachment 15502
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his was not noted as severe. The listed sinus as normal and he didn't list any history of anything nor does he have any history of any of the conditions . Dr. also made note of a birthmark and a mole he had so she seemed to be super thorough in her exam. I saw that thread and it seemed to be around surgery to repair deviated septum...he hasn't had it. He never knew it existed. I am confident I could find a ENT to say it doesn't effect respiratory capacity. He is a Spartan racer, distance runner and multisport athlete with no history of breathing issues, asthma or bronchitis. Just wondering if Dr. making the note means he will need waiver now automatically.
 
Honestly, in DS's case, he never had any significant issues. His main desire for having it done was to improve his vocal performance, as he is very active in our school drama club (two major musicals every academic year), chorus and jazz chorale. His vocal coach was actually the one who suggested he get checked for a deviated septum. We had no idea whether he even had one. Doctor did ID some rhinitis prior to surgery, and also removed adenoids as part of surgery. Not sure if that was planned beforehand or something he just decided to do during the procedure. My understanding is adenoids normally disappear by adulthood regardless.

Anyway, the recovery time from this surgery is only a couple weeks. At this point, I can't imagine there would be any change in DS's condition from nearly 18 months post-surgery to 24 months post-surgery. Hence, trying to be pro-active by visiting with doc, explaining situation and asking for a letter with fully clean bill of health.
 
pa-outdoorsman said:
Honestly, in DS's case, he never had any significant issues. His main desire for having it done was to improve his vocal performance, as he is very active in our school drama club (two major musicals every academic year), chorus and jazz chorale. His vocal coach was actually the one who suggested he get checked for a deviated septum. We had no idea whether he even had one. Doctor did ID some rhinitis prior to surgery, and also removed adenoids as part of surgery. Not sure if that was planned beforehand or something he just decided to do during the procedure. My understanding is adenoids normally disappear by adulthood regardless.

Anyway, the recovery time from this surgery is only a couple weeks. At this point, I can't imagine there would be any change in DS's condition from nearly 18 months post-surgery to 24 months post-surgery. Hence, trying to be pro-active by visiting with doc, explaining situation and asking for a letter with fully clean bill of health.
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Yeah we are hoping for the best. If I have to get a waiver I will. I was really hoping to be all buttoned up soon. This is where We really miss Larry Mullen on this forum.
 
This makes me feel a little better. From DoD Instruction 6130.03 Volume 1, "Medical Standards for Military Service: Appointment, Enlistment, or Induction," Consistent if he has had surgery within 24 months it would disqualify....no mention of just being diagnosed with deviated septum.

6.7. NOSE, SINUSES, MOUTH, AND LARYNX.a. Current cleft lip or palate defects not satisfactorily repaired by surgery or that prevent drinking from a straw or that may reasonably be expected to interfere with using or wearing military equipment.b. Current ulceration of oral mucosa or tongue, excluding aphthous ulcers.c. Symptomatic vocal cord dysfunction, including, but not limited to:DoDI 6130.03-V1, March 30, 2018Change 4, November 16, 2022SECTION 6: DISQUALIFYING CONDITIONS 18(1) Vocal cord paralysis.(2) Paradoxical vocal cord movement.(3) Spasmodic dysphonia.(4) Non-benign polyps.(5) Chronic hoarseness.(6) Chronic laryngitis (lasting longer than 21 days).(7) History of vocal cord dysfunction with respiratory symptoms or exercise intolerance. d. Current olfactory deficit.e. Greater than one episode of epistaxis requiring medical intervention (urgent care or emergency department treatment or procedure) in the past 24 months. f. Current chronic sinusitis, current nasal polyp or polypoid mass(es) or history of sinus surgery within the last 24 months, excluding antralchoanal polyp or sinus mucosal retention cyst.g. Current symptomatic perforation of nasal septum.h. History of deformities or conditions or anomalies of the upper alimentary tract, mouth,tongue, palate, throat, pharynx, larynx, and nose, that interfered with chewing, swallowing,speech, or breathing.
 
They seem to take more issue with having a deviated septum than the surgery to fix it (rhinoplasty aka a nose job). Also, if you just get a rhinoplasty to fix it, where they’re just altering your nose/septum, and NOT messing with your sinuses at all (deeper inside), it might not actually be considered a “sinus surgery”, check with your ENT and DoDMERB on that…
 
Ivy22 said:
They seem to take more issue with having a deviated septum than the surgery to fix it (rhinoplasty aka a nose job). Also, if you just get a rhinoplasty to fix it, where they’re just altering your nose/septum, and NOT messing with your sinuses at all (deeper inside), it might not actually be considered a “sinus surgery”, check with your ENT and DoDMERB on that…
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I think it is just the opposite. There is no listed mention of deviated septum as being an issue for disqualification but it does list specifically that surgery need to be past the 24 months mark. Also every mention of it here on these boards have been of people having to get waiver due to the surgery for deviated septum not for the condition.
 
gooseblitz said:
I think it is just the opposite. There is no listed mention of deviated septum as being an issue for disqualification but it does list specifically that surgery need to be past the 24 months mark. Also every mention of it here on these boards have been of people having to get waiver due to the surgery for deviated septum not for the condition.
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I guess it depends on the how bad the deviated septum is and the specific surgery. Big difference between a nose job and a sinus surgery. Years back, when I was going through DoDMERB, this question seemed to fall the other way. A deviated septum usually raised some red flags. I know nowadays that NAMI (Naval Aviation medical clearance guys) have a lot more issues with a deviated septum due to all the concerns that condition presents for aviation. But they didn't care at all about a rhinoplasty/nose job to fix it, as long as it wasn't a sinus surgery (which it wasn't because it was just the nose), it didn't even require a waiver to get cleared to fly. In fact, they even said they preferred getting a nose job over having a deviated septum when I went through NAMI.

Medical situations and clearances vary from individual to individual, no one surgery or condition is exactly the same, sometimes their standards and processes change over time too.
 
Curious how this turns out. Let us know!

If it’s an ERROR by the examining physician, I personally would want that corrected in his official military medical record. No matter a Q or DQ.
 
Back in the day, my deviated septum was also a more severe case than the average deviated septum. Nose was very visibly crooked, and one of my nostrils was at least 90-95% blocked. It would have definitely presented challenges for a community like naval aviation: oxygen mask would've likely not sealed right; possibly some difficulties equalizing sinus/ear pressure too. Lots of recommendations from my childhood ENT and the military doctors to get it fixed sooner rather than later, so I did. I ended up getting a pretty extensive rhinoplasty (nose job) to fix my deviated septum, it was really crooked before surgery. Surgery was ONLY on my nose, not in my sinuses! Nothing was wrong with my sinuses! Only wait time for medical clearance was for the surgery to heal without complications, and me to be able to conduct physical fitness.

A couple years later, the nose job was a complete nonissue during my flight physical, no waiver required.
 
Yeah, his is minor enough no one has ever noticed it before. He would eventually like to branch Army Aviation and fly helicopters. I guess if he needs a waiver we will pursue it. If he doesn't maybe we will address it after he is a contracted cadet so he can heal his 24 months before he contracts. 1709214779176.png
 
Just as clarification surgery to repair deviated septum is septoplasty not rhinoplasty (nose job). At least that's what my DS had. I think it's pretty minor compared to a nose job. Or else the rhinoplasty is only needed in more severe cases.

Regardless, I doubt this is a major issue for clearance. Obviously "every case is individual" but I can't recall seeing any past posts here where someone wasn't ultimately cleared. Some needed waivers others didn't.
 
I think it all depends on how you recover and your physical aptitude and activity. We had Dodmerb exam in Nov 2023. My son was fully qualified medically after having a surgery in June 2022 for a deviated septum as well as an ACL reconstruction at the end of 2022. We were upfront and honest about those plus many other things I have seen as disqualifications (ex concussion in 2022 etc). His return to sports was swift even after all that. During questioning at the exam, he explained he had played a full football season no injuries or issues after an 8.5 month recovery. It seems to be all about the lasting impacts in my opinion. Or maybe just about how they view your records.
 
pa-outdoorsman said:
Just as clarification surgery to repair deviated septum is septoplasty not rhinoplasty (nose job). At least that's what my DS had. I think it's pretty minor compared to a nose job. Or else the rhinoplasty is only needed in more severe cases.

Regardless, I doubt this is a major issue for clearance. Obviously "every case is individual" but I can't recall seeing any past posts here where someone wasn't ultimately cleared. Some needed waivers others didn't.
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I had to get a rhinoplasty from a facial plastic surgeon (not just any ENT) because mine was such a severe case. The wait for medical clearance was the same as a septoplasty, healed without complications, so like a month or two at most for my case. The main sticking point with rhinoplasty or septoplasty for the medical clearance guys (especially aviation ones like NAMI) is that it is not a sinus surgery. That's probably where the 24 months comes into play.
 
Ivy22 said:
I had to get a rhinoplasty from a facial plastic surgeon (not just any ENT) because mine was such a severe case. The wait for medical clearance was the same as a septoplasty, healed without complications, so like a month or two at most for my case. The main sticking point with rhinoplasty or septoplasty for the medical clearance guys (especially aviation ones like NAMI) is that it is not a sinus surgery. That's probably where the 24 months comes into play.
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Gotcha. I did not see anywhere else on the DodMERB questionaire where you'd report it, other than "sinus surgery," but I assume the review folks see this all the time. So, we are just hoping that as long as we have the letter from the surgeon saying he is completely healed and there is no issue that it will not cause a problem. Thanks!
 
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