Abstract

Background: Nasal obstruction is the common presentation of the underlying pathology. Inferior turbinate hypertrophy is the leading cause of nasal obstruction. The inferior turbinate hypertrophy can be diagnosed by anterior rhinoscopic examination. Nasal endoscopy may be used to confirm the cases of complete turbinate hypertrophy. The present study aimed to compare the surgical results of conventional inferior turbinectomy with turbinoplasty.
Methods: The patients with hypertrophied Inferior Turbinate were selected for the study. Investigations included ECG, Chest X-ray, CT of paranasal sinuses were obtained to rule out osteomeatal complex involvement. Laboratory investigations done were CBP, ESR, Platelet counts, bleeding time, Clotting Time, Renal function tests, HIV, HBsAg. A standard operative procedure was used for conventional turbinectomy and Microdebrider assisted Inferior turbinoplasty.
Results: Out of n=50 cases in the study the important complaints found were nasal obstruction in 100% of the cases, sneezing was the complaint in 76% of cases and rhinorrhoea was 64% of cases, and breathing difficulty was found in 100% cases. The postoperative evaluation of the cases was done by DNE & found no cases of inferior turbinate hypertrophy. DNS was found in 50% of cases; in n=1 case of microdebrider assisted turbinoplasty and n=2 cases of conventional turbinectomy concha bullosa was found in n=6(12%) cases of the study.
Conclusion: The current study concludes that both turbinectomy and turbinoplasty have almost similar success rates. However, turbinectomy removes a substantial portion of the inferior turbinate and gives symptomatic relief instantly in the postoperative period. The incidences of synechiae and crusting are considerably more in conventional turbinectomy. The current results  did not indicate any superiority of turbinectomy over turbinoplasty and vice versa.