BACKGROUND: Controlled prospective studies are needed to determine whether surgical treatment in fact has an effect additive to that of medical treatment of nasal polyposis. OBJECTIVE: We sought to compare the effect of medical treatment versus combined surgical and medical treatment on olfaction, polyp score, and symptoms in nasal polyposis. METHODS:Thirty-two patients with nasal polyposis and symmetrical nasal airways were randomized to unilateral endoscopic sinus surgery after pretreatment with oral prednisolone for 10 days and local nasal budesonide bilaterally for 1 month. Postoperatively, patients were given local nasal steroids (budesonide). Patients were evaluated with nasal endoscopy, symptom scores, and olfactory thresholds. They were followed for 12 months. RESULTS: The sense of smell was improved by the combination of local and oral steroids. Surgery had no additional effect. Symptom scores improved significantly with medical treatment alone, but surgery had additional beneficial effects on nasal obstruction and secretion. After surgery, the polyp score decreased significantly on the operated side but remained the same on the unoperated side. Twenty-five percent of the patients were willing to undergo an operation also on the unoperated side at the end of the study. CONCLUSIONS: Medical treatment seems to be sufficient to treat most symptoms of nasal polyposis. When hyposmia is the primary symptom, no additional benefit seems to be gained from surgical treatment. If nasal obstruction is the main problem after steroid treatment, surgical treatment is indicated. Selection of those who will benefit from surgery should be based on the patient's symptoms and not on the examiner's polyp score.
RCT Entities:
BACKGROUND: Controlled prospective studies are needed to determine whether surgical treatment in fact has an effect additive to that of medical treatment of nasal polyposis. OBJECTIVE: We sought to compare the effect of medical treatment versus combined surgical and medical treatment on olfaction, polyp score, and symptoms in nasal polyposis. METHODS: Thirty-two patients with nasal polyposis and symmetrical nasal airways were randomized to unilateral endoscopic sinus surgery after pretreatment with oral prednisolone for 10 days and local nasal budesonide bilaterally for 1 month. Postoperatively, patients were given local nasal steroids (budesonide). Patients were evaluated with nasal endoscopy, symptom scores, and olfactory thresholds. They were followed for 12 months. RESULTS: The sense of smell was improved by the combination of local and oral steroids. Surgery had no additional effect. Symptom scores improved significantly with medical treatment alone, but surgery had additional beneficial effects on nasal obstruction and secretion. After surgery, the polyp score decreased significantly on the operated side but remained the same on the unoperated side. Twenty-five percent of the patients were willing to undergo an operation also on the unoperated side at the end of the study. CONCLUSIONS: Medical treatment seems to be sufficient to treat most symptoms of nasal polyposis. When hyposmia is the primary symptom, no additional benefit seems to be gained from surgical treatment. If nasal obstruction is the main problem after steroid treatment, surgical treatment is indicated. Selection of those who will benefit from surgery should be based on the patient's symptoms and not on the examiner's polyp score.
Authors: Eli O Meltzer; Daniel L Hamilos; James A Hadley; Donald C Lanza; Bradley F Marple; Richard A Nicklas; Claus Bachert; James Baraniuk; Fuad M Baroody; Michael S Benninger; Itzhak Brook; Badrul A Chowdhury; Howard M Druce; Stephen Durham; Berrylin Ferguson; Jack M Gwaltney; Michael Kaliner; David W Kennedy; Valerie Lund; Robert Naclerio; Ruby Pawankar; Jay F Piccirillo; Patricia Rohane; Ronald Simon; Raymond G Slavin; Alkis Togias; Ellen R Wald; S James Zinreich Journal: Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg Date: 2004-12 Impact factor: 3.497
Authors: Eli O Meltzer; Daniel L Hamilos; James A Hadley; Donald C Lanza; Bradley F Marple; Richard A Nicklas; Claus Bachert; James Baraniuk; Fuad M Baroody; Michael S Benninger; Itzhak Brook; Badrul A Chowdhury; Howard M Druce; Stephen Durham; Berrylin Ferguson; Jack M Gwaltney; Michael Kaliner; David W Kennedy; Valerie Lund; Robert Naclerio; Ruby Pawankar; Jay F Piccirillo; Patricia Rohane; Ronald Simon; Raymond G Slavin; Alkis Togias; Ellen R Wald; S James Zinreich Journal: J Allergy Clin Immunol Date: 2004-12 Impact factor: 10.793