Coblation nasal septal swell body reduction for treatment of nasal obstruction: a preliminary report

Abstract

In this paper, we present the results of coblation nasal septal swell body (NSB) reduction for the treatment of nasal obstruction in patients with abnormally thickened NSB. The study design was a retrospective clinical series conducted at a single tertiary medical center. Eight patients underwent coblation NSB reduction. Pre-operative and post-operative nasal functions were evaluated by acoustic rhinometry and subjective symptom scales. We also analyzed pre-operative CT scan images and nasal endoscopic findings. The mean maximal NSB width was 16.4 ± 2.2 mm on pre-operative coronal CT scan images. The mean visual analog scale score for nasal obstruction was decreased from preoperative 7.63 ± 0.99 points to 3.88 ± 0.92 points (postoperative 3 months), 4.16 ± 0.78 points (postoperative 6 months), and 4.63 ± 0.69 points (postoperative 1 year). Six out of the eight patients were satisfied with the clinical outcome at 1 year after the procedure. To the best of our knowledge, coblation NSB reduction has not yet been reported in the medical literature. Our results show that it can be an effective treatment modality for nasal valve narrowing in patients with abnormally thickened NSB.

The relationship between nasal septal body size and allergic rhinitis and sinonasal pathologies

“…Arslan et al [16] stated an NSB width ≤8 mm as 'normal'. In a study of Kim et al, [9] the mean width for the markedly enlarged NSB was 16.4±2.2 mm. From this standpoint, we defined NSB's larger than 1.5 cm as 'markedly enlarged' NSB.…”

“…Since the central part of the NSB nearly corresponds to the nasal valve region, enlargement in this structure can cause airway resistance. [9][10][11][12] Kim et al, [9] showed that by decreasing NSB volume, the nasal valve area can be expanded. If the relatively narrow distal nasal valve section is considered, even very small changes in NSB dimensions may have significant consequences on nasal resistance.…”

“…[4] Because NSB may be confused with 'high septal deviation', coronal CT or magnetic resonance imaging is required to evaluate this structure. [9] In patients who attended our clinic with sinonasal complaints, the preferred imaging method is paranasal CT. For this reason, similar to other studies in the literature, we also evaluated CT images. [3,13,14] Koo et al [15] found that nearly a quarter of their patients had NSB.…”

The Nasal Swell Body and Septal Perforation Repair

“…16 Swell body reduction has been successfully performed for nasal obstruction. 17,18 The potential effect of septal perforation on the NSB has not been studied.…”

Nasal swell body: a literature review

“…Nasal obstruction has various methods of treatment, related to the etiology. For example, in case of nasal turbinate hypertrophy or septal deviation, surgical approach is considered the mainstay treatment 1,13 .…”