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Articles tagged with "CRS"

Drug-Eluting Sinus Stent Hits the Market: May help maintain patency after FESS

Maintaining sinus patency after functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) has long been an issue; as many as 23 to 47 percent of patients require revision surgery after FESS. Now, a new drug-eluting, bioabsorbable stent manufactured by Intersect (Palo Alto, Calif.) is being billed as a “breakthrough treatment [that] improves outcomes for sinus surgery,” according to a news release from the company. The device, which received pre-market approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in August, has been studied since 2008. It is currently available in Texas, New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Atlanta, Ohio and Kentucky.

Concurrent Septoplasty Does Not Affect CRS-Specific Health-Related QOL

Are chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)-specific health-related quality of life (HRQOL) outcomes affected by concurrent septoplasty performed during endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) for medically refractory CRS? Background: Septoplasty is commonly performed during ESS. Some might question whether ESS outcomes, even CRS-specific outcomes, are the result of the ESS, the septoplasty or some combination of the two. Because objective […]

Medical Management for CRS Improves QOL

In patients who have failed medical management for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), are there greater quality of life (QOL) outcome improvements with further medical therapy or endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS)? Background: Although it is widely believed that QOL measures are improved with ESS, there is insufficient evidence in the literature comparing various treatments for CRS. This study […]

Middle Turbinate Variations Don’t Justify Sinus Surgery

Are anatomic variations of the middle turbinate (MT), such as concha bullosa and paradoxical MT, associated with nasal septal deviation or chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)? Background: CRS has multiple underlying causes. Although anatomic variations of nasal and sinus structures have been implicated as a possible risk factor for CRS, there is no agreement in the literature. Study […]

The Role of Balloon Catheter Sinuplasty in Pediatric Sinus Disease

What is the role of balloon catheter sinuplasty (BCS) in the surgical management of pediatric sinus disease? Background: Adenoidectomy and functional endoscopic sinus surgery have traditionally comprised the surgical management of chronic recurrent sinusitis (CRS) recalcitrant to medical therapy in the pediatric population. First introduced in 2006, BCS does not involve tissue removal and is, theoretically, […]

Medical Therapy vs. Surgery for CRS

How does surgery perform prospectively when compared to medical therapy for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)? Background: Since the introduction of endoscopic diagnosis and surgery for CRS in 1985, very few prospective studies have addressed the question of when patients should be treated with medical therapy alone and when they should have endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS). Study design: Level […]

Scant Data on Oral Corticosteroid Therapy for CRS Without Polyps

How well do our non-polyp chronic rhinosinusitis patients do when treated with oral steroids as part of their medical therapy? Background: Because we now look at chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) as an inflammatory problem, the use of topical and oral corticosteroids becomes more important. Systematic evaluation of oral steroid use in CRS without nasal polyposis (CRSsNP) has […]

Researchers Find Evidence of Esophageal-Nasal Reflex

Does a neural reflex exist that links the esophagus and the nasal airway, possibly explaining a mechanism for the association between gastroesophageal reflux (GER) disease and chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)? Background: Many studies have shown an association between GER and CRS. The leading theory on the pathogenic mechanism is direct reflux of gastric acid into the proximal […]

Surgery for Chronic Rhinosinusitis May Help Sleep, Sex

What is the impact of surgery on the sleep and sexual function of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)? Background: Recent evaluations of the effects of CRS on the quality of life (QoL) have shown that CRS has a significant QoL impact even in comparison with chronic debilitating diseases such as diabetes and congestive heart failure. Recent […]

Secondhand Smoke Increases Chronic Rhinosinusitis Risk

Is exposure to secondhand smoke a risk factor for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS)? Background: There are surprisingly few studies that address the association between secondhand smoke (SHS) and sinusitis, and most use fairly weak criteria for sinusitis, such as a patient’s having checked “sinusitis” on a health questionnaire. There are, however, several studies that address the effects […]