NW LA Times

• Lindsay Lohan, the star of "Falling for Christmas," has struggled with sinus problems during her career.
• People who have sinusitis might experience a stuffy nose, nasal discharge, facial pain, headaches or toothaches.
• Balloon sinuplasty procedures are quick, low-risk and provide lasting relief.

Lindsay Lohan is starring in the new Netflix movie "Falling for Christmas," which follows the story of an heiress who loses her memory in a skiing accident and finds herself in the care of a widower and his daughter. 

Lohan has struggled with sinus problems during her career, which have interfered with her ability to film scenes for other movies, according to Vanity Fair. For instance, while shooting a movie in 2013, Lohan's production team had to skip a day of filming because Lohan was suffering from a sinus infection and earache.

People suffering from sinus infections can experience symptoms including a stuffy nose, nasal discharge, facial pain, headaches, a fever, toothaches, a decreased sense of smell or bad breath, according to Scotland's National Health Service. Sinus infections could resolve within a few weeks, or chronic sinusitis might last for months.

Chronic sinusitis is one of the most common chronic medical conditions among Americans, and it can have a negative effect on one's quality of life, the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) says.

The NCBI conducted a study comparing patients who underwent functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) with patients who opted for a balloon sinuplasty to treat chronic sinusitis. The study found that, although both procedures are effective, balloon sinuplasty patients needed fewer antibiotic treatments after their procedure. FESS involves removing sinus tissue, while balloon sinuplasty is "less traumatic," since it doesn't involve removing any tissue, and instead relies on dilation to improve sinus function.

Dr. Matt Hershcovitch of SoCal Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers said balloon sinuplasty is a quick, easy procedure that provides long-lasting sinus relief. 

"Because this is done here in the office as a minimally invasive procedure, the balloon sinuplasty is one of the safest, if not the safest, sinus procedures you can actually undergo," Hershcovitch told NW LA Times. "This allows us to offer the procedure to many patients who would not otherwise be candidates. Many of my more senior patients are fearful, for good reason, of going under a general anesthetic and wish to avoid that, if at all possible, as there are significant cardiopulmonary and neurological risks with that. The balloon sinuplasty allows us to perform the procedure on a whole range of patients, anyone from a early teenager all the way up to centenarians."

A balloon sinuplasty procedure lasts 10 to 15 minutes, and patients typically recover within one to two days. Most patients can resume their normal activities in that time period, although they may experience some swelling for up to a week, according to Eisemann Plastic Surgery Center.

FESS procedures take one and a half to two hours, and patients might need up to four weeks to fully recover, during which time they should avoid strenuous activities such as exercising.

For more information about sinus infections, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.