Middle turbinate handling during ESS. Our experience

Purpose: The treatment of middle turbinate (MT) during endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) for chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) remains a controversial issue. Several authors recommended preservation of MT to avoid complications, but MT resection is sometimes necessary. In the last years, our group has applied an original surgical technique to preserve MT, stabilize its head and ensure patency of the ostiomeatal complex (OMC) in ESS. We herein described this approach to the MT and reported its preliminary results in terms of post-operative endoscopic features and complications. Methods: The study retrospectively considered 34 consecutive adult patients suffering from CRS and treated with primary or revision ESS. Medialization of the MT and its stabilization to achieve post-operative patency of the OMC was obtained by means of: (i) creation of a surgically controlled synechia between the MT head and nasal septum; (ii) positioning of a silicone plate in the OMC. The silicone splints kept the MT head in an obliged position to contact the septum. Results: At 12-month follow-up control, we found: (i) stabilized MT medialization in all treated cases, (ii) only one case of lateral synechia without recurrent CRS, and (iii) a polypoid recurrence rate of 13%. Conclusions: The MT handling technique during ESS herein preliminarily described seems to be an effective approach to medialize and stabilize the MT. This technique could be particularly appropriate for unstable MT after removing massive inflammatory lesions of the mucosa.