A PROSPECTIVE-STUDY USING RHINOMANOMETRY AND PATIENT CLINICAL SATISFACTION TO DETERMINE IF OBJECTIVE MEASUREMENTS OF NASAL AIRWAY-RESISTANCE CAN IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF SEPTOPLASTY

In the ENT Department of University Central Hospital, Turku, the waiti ng list for elective septoplasty grew to 4 to 5 years in the late 1980 s. Therefore, a prospective clinical project was initiated during whic h all patients waiting for septal surgery were re-examined and nasal a irway function was measured with rhinomanometry. Patients with high na sal resistance or other specific indications for nasal obstruction wer e selected for surgery (n = 432). The remaining patients were excluded from surgery and followed up (n = 284). Results showed that if patien ts were referred for septal surgery without rhinomanometric study, abo ut 10% became symptom-free within 3 to 5 years. Patients operated on a fter defining a high preoperative intranasal resistance had a higher p ostoperative satisfaction level (85%) than those operated on with norm al nasal resistances but other indications for correcting the nasal se ptum (69%). After 3 years, the majority of patients not treated surgic ally were satisfied with their conservative treatments, although certa in patients still required some form of nasal surgery to relieve recur ring nasal and/or sinus complaints.