Septal Deviation and Nasal Resistance: An Investigation using Virtual Surgery and Computational Fluid Dynamics

Abstract

In the model, anterior septal deviations increased nasal resistance more than posterior deviations. This suggests, in agreement with the literature, that other causes of nasal obstruction (dysfunction of the nasal valve, allergy, etc.) should be carefully considered in patients with posterior septal deviations because such deviations may not affect nasal resistance. This study illustrates how computational modeling and virtual manipulation of the nasal geometry are useful to investigate nasal physiology.

Impact of Septal Correction on the Blood Pressure of Hypertensive Patients with Deviated Nasal Septum

“…In contrast, a deviation in the nasal valve region more than doubled nasal resistance. These findings are in agreement with rhinomanometry literature and with the observation that patients with anterior septal deviations benefit the most from septal correction [17]. These findings concurred with the results of our study as over 80 % of our patients with pure anterior deviation and combined type of deviation showed control of BP following surgical correction nasal septum, whereas only 30.8 % of those with pure posterior deviation had their BP controlled postoperatively.…”

Computed nasal resistance compared with patient-reported symptoms in surgically treated nasal airway passages: A preliminary report

“…Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques can be used to simulate airflow through three-dimensional (3D) reconstructions of the nasal cavity, providing highly detailed assessments of airflow patterns, pressure, and, in particular, bilateral and unilateral NR. A number of studies have been conducted using 3D nasal CFD models, some of which have focused specifically on the effects that common pathologies and surgical changes have on nasal airflow, [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] indicating a growing maturity in the use of CFD methods.…”

“…Because the pressureflow relationship for nasal airflow is nonlinear, the NR value depends strongly on the pressure drop selected for its computation. 17,45 The airflow simulations presented here were limited to steady-state, laminar conditions, meaning that the cyclic nature of airflow and turbulence were not modeled. There is theoretical evidence supporting the use of steady-state simulations to approximate cyclic breathing.…”

The paranasal sinuses as the nitric oxide depot

“…В течение последних 5 лет трехмерное моделирование воздушных потоков в полости носа и околоносовых пазу-хах, а также динамическое изменение содержания оксида азота в околоносовых пазухах при выполнении хирурги-ческих вмешательств выполнялись с использованием раз-личных компьютерных программ: Mimics [34][35][36][37][38], vWorks [39,40], Amira [41]. Во всех приведенных исследованиях был получен примерно один результат -хирургическое расширение естественного соустья верхнечелюстной па-зухи ведет к улучшению ее вентиляции и, как результат, к снижению концентрации NO в пазухе.…”