Studying whole-mounted sections of the paranasal sinuses to understand the complications of endoscopic sinus surgery.

Endoscopic techniques for paranasal sinus surgery have allowed detailed and complete removal of sinus disease while promising minimum distress to the patient. The telescopic view of the operative field shows detail of the sinus anatomy and its disease, not possible in earlier transnasal techniques. Several articles document the serious complications seen with the endoscopic surgery. To understand the paranasal sinuses and their relationships to the orbit and cribriform plate, blocks of cadaver heads that included the orbit and paranasal sinuses were whole sectioned. It has been possible to see areas of the cribriform and orbital wall that are at risk to produce cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea and orbital complications. At the same time, landmarks for avoiding these complications can be defined to guide the surgeon during this dissection as seen through the endoscope.