Argon plasma coagulation in the treatment of nonallergic hypertrophic inferior nasal turbinates

Purpose: Various surgical procedures have been recently proposed for the treatment of hypertrophic inferior nasal turbinates as a result of the advances made in medical technology and growing public demand for minimally invasive therapies. The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the argon plasma coagulation technique for inferior turbinate reduction in a homogeneous series of patients with nonallergic inferior turbinate hypertrophy. Material and Methods: Twenty symptomatic patients underwent argon plasma coagulation surgical treatment under local anesthesia and were clinically followed up after 1 month and then every 3 months (anterior rhinoscopy and nasal endoscopy). Diagnostic evaluations using active anterior rhinomanometry were made after 3 and 12 months. Results: All of the patients reported a postoperative improvement in nasal swelling and patency. No postoperative complications were observed. Rhinomanometry after 12 months showed a reduction in mean total resistance from the pretreatment level of 1.06 Pa S/cm(3) to 0.49 Pa S/cm(3). There was also a statistically significant reduction in nasal resistance for each of the investigated conditions (inspiration and expiration in orthostatism and clinostatism). Conclusions: Argon plasma coagulation is a safe and efficacious procedure for the minimally invasive treatment of inferior turbinate hypertrophy, which can be performed under local anesthesia in an outpatient setting with little discomfort for the patient. (C) 2003 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.