Medical Articles

Proven medical research regarding balloon sinuplasty and other sinus procedures

Innovative In-Office Balloon Procedure Provides an Alternative to Sinus Surgery and Nasal Packing

Randall C. Latorre, MD

More than 30 million people in the U.S. are affected by chronic sinusitis. Each year it’s one of the most common reasons that individuals visit their doctor. People who suffer from ongoing sinus infections usually have difficulty breathing, contributing to other health disorders.

Symptoms of Chronic Sinusitis are:

• Nasal obstruction
• Difficulty breathing
• Postnasal drainage
• Thick mucosal drainage
• Coughing
• Weakening sense of smell
• Dry mouth
• Trouble sleeping
• Pain in eyes and cheeks
• Sore teeth and gums
• Facial sensations of pressure or pain
• Sneezing

Several of the leading contributors of chronic sinus disorders are allergies, hay fever, nasal polyps, deviated septum (crooked nasal bone), and environmental pollutants. Given the commonality of this condition, the treatment options for sinusitis have been documented since the 1700’s in medical journals.

The conventional therapeutic treatments are antibiotics, steroidal nasal sprays, over-the-counter decongestants and saline irrigation. But when these standard-of-care approaches fail, which unfortunately as these remedies show a minimal curative benefit, that’s when surgical procedures have proven beneficial.. [...]

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Clinical Consensus Statement: Balloon Dilation of the Sinuses

Abstract

Objective. To develop a clinical consensus statement on the use of sinus ostial dilation (SOD) of the paranasal sinuses.

Methods. An expert panel of otolaryngologists was assem­bled to represent general otolaryngology and relevant sub­specialty societies. The target population is adults 18 years or older with chronic or recurrent rhinosinusitis (with or without nasal polyps, with or without prior sinus surgery) for whom SOD is being recommended, defined as endo­scopic use of a balloon device to enlarge or open the out­flow tracts of the maxillary, frontal, or sphenoid sinuses, as a standalone procedure or with endoscopic surgery. A mod­ified Delphi method was used to distill expert opinion into clinical statements that met a standardized definition of consensus. [...]

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AMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery I Original Investigation

Safety and Effectiveness ofa Bioabsorbable Steroid-Releasing Implant for the Paranasal Sinus Ostia

A Randomized Clinical Trial

IMPORTANCE Suboptimal outcomes of endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) are often associated with restenosis and inflammation of frontal sinus ostia. Steroid-releasing sinus implants have been shown to maintain sinus patency by minimizing inflammation and scar tissue formation. An hourglass-shaped, bioabsorbable, steroid-releasing implant was developed to provide mechanical support and optimize drug delivery to paranasal sinus ostia.

OBJECTIVE To assess the safety and efficacy of the hourglass-shaped, bioabsorbable, steroid-releasing sinus implant in improving postoperative outcomes when placed in the frontal sinus ostia (FSO) following ESS in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS).

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In a prospective, multicenter, randomized clinical trial using an intrapatient control design (ESS followed by implant placement within 1 FSO vs ESS alone on the contralateral side) 80 adult patients, with a mean (SD) age of 49.5 (13.4) years and consisting of53 (66%) men and 27 (34%) women, were enrolled and underwent bilateral frontal sinusotomies With 1 frontal sinus randomized to receive a steroid-releasing implant. The study was carried out in 12 US centers between July 2015 and March 2016.

INTERVENTIONS A bioabsorbable steroid-releasing implant with hourglass shape containing 370 µg of mometasone furoate. All patients received standardized postoperative care. [...]

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