Nasal obstruction symptom evaluation (NOSE) score outcomes after septorhinoplasty

Objectives/HypothesisThe time interval at which Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE) scores stabilize after functional septorhinoplasty has not been determined. Our goal was to characterize longitudinal trends of patient-reported outcomes of nasal obstruction using the NOSE survey instrument following functional septorhinoplasty. Study DesignProspective longitudinal cohort study. MethodsAdult patients (18 years) with nasal obstruction who underwent functional septorhinoplasty by three different surgeons at a single academic, tertiary referral center were identified. NOSE scores were obtained preoperatively and prospectively during three postoperative intervals defined as early (1-3 months), middle (4-6 months), and late (10 months.) Longitudinal analysis included repeated measures analysis of variance and adjustments for multiple comparisons. ResultsA total of 49 patients met inclusion criteria. For the total cohort, mean NOSE scores significantly improved between preoperative and early postoperative evaluations (71.4, standard deviation [SD]17.0 vs. 24.2, SD19.5; P<.001) but did not significantly change between early and middle (20.6, SD +/- 19.1; P=.543) or middle and late (23.1, SD +/- 24.9; P>.999) time intervals. ConclusionsPatients with nasal obstruction who undergo functional septorhinoplasty can be expected to have significant improvement in self -reported nasal obstruction as early as 1 to 3 months postoperatively with a continued, durable, long-standing benefit lasting at least 10 months after surgery. Future studies can consider the 3-month time frame as a proxy for 1 year outcomes to help reduce survey burden. Level of Evidence2c Laryngoscope, 129:841-846, 2019