Musharaf Baig, Faheem Pervaiz Akhtar.
Management of the hypertrophied inferior turbinate.
J Rawal Med Coll Jan ;8(2):75-7.

Background: To evaluate and compare the different modalities of treatment for the management of the hypertrophied inferior turbinate causing nasal obstruction. Methods: This study was performed on 116 patients who presented in the ENT Department of Holy Family Hospital, Rawalpindi. Only those patients were selected who had nasal obstruction due to enlarged inferior turbinate. The methods employed were medical (local/systemic steroids and antihistamines) and surgical. The surgical methods employed were cautry, submucous diathermy, lateral displacement of inferior turbinate, cryosurgery, inferior turbinectomy and submucous resection with inferior turbinectomy. The clinical features and clinical assessment of the patients, pre and post operatively were taken as the criteria of success or otherwise of the method. Follow-up was maintained over an 18 month period. Results: The age ranged in most of our patients from 10 to 50 years, with maximum number being between 18 to 30 years. 62%, of our patients were males while 38% were females. 31.03% patients presented with unilateral nasal obstruction, 47.41% with bilateral and 21.55% had alternate nasal obstruction. All patients with unilateral nasal obstruction, had unilateral inferior turbinate hypertrophy. In patients who presented with bilateral nasal obstruction, 24.13% had deflected nasal septum with contralateral compensatory inferior turbinate hypertrophy, while 23.27%, had bilateral inferior turbinate hypertrophy. ln patients with alternate nasal obstruction with rhinorrhoea, all had rhinitis with inferior turbinate enlargement. Inferior turbinectomy was performed in the maximum number of patients and had the highest percentage of success (94.7%). It was closely followed by submucous resection with inferior turbinectomy (93.7% success) and then submucous diathermy (75% success). Conclusion: lnferior turbinectomy is the most effective method for the treatment of hypertrophied inferior turbinate with the least recurrence. Cautery, submucous diathermy and cryosurgery are effective in about 60% of cases. Medical treatment with steroids, local or systemic, and antihistamines, is effective initially, but there is high recurrence, when the drug is stopped.


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Posted by: somayya on Jul 2006

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