Healing results of prolonged acute frontal sinusitis treated with endoscopic sinus surgery

In a marked part of patients suffering from acute frontal sinusitis, the symptoms do not resolve after initial therapy (antibiotics and/or trephination). The prolongation of the healing or recurrences may be caused by persistent inflammation or by structural abnormalities at the nasofrontal connection. During the last decade endoscopic surgery (FES) has become a very useful method to restore the frontonasal drainage although long term results of this kind of population are rare. We evaluated the results of endoscopic surgery in two patient groups (total number of 50) both operated after prolongation (persistent symptoms after 4 weeks) of the initial acute phase of the frontal sinusitis. The first group (A, 15 patients, first trephined) was followed-up 4 years, the number of recurrences after the first FES was 60% and in the other group (B, no initial trephination) with over 6 months follow-up, 91% of patients had recurrences. In group A pre- and postoperative CT-scanning was used to determine the possible anatomical variations that could be causing the failures. All but 3 patients showed some kind of abnormal anatomical variation. In group B only preoperative CT was done. In most cases the reasons for recurrences of frontal sinusitis were polyps and/or chronic inflammation at the ethmoidal region.