Radiofrequency for the treatment of vasomotor rhinitis

We assessed the efficacy of submucosal application of radiofrequency to the inferior turbinate for the treatment of vasomotor rhinitis.

Twenty patients with vasomotor rhinitis (9 males, 11 females; mean age 29.2 years; range 20 to 40 years) were treated with radiofrequency applied to the inferior turbinate. Symptoms such as nasal obstruction, sneezing, and watery nasal discharge were graded with the use of a visual analog scale (VAS) before, and on days 1, 3, 7, 30, 60, 90, and 180 after the treatment.

The severity of symptoms began to decrease following the first week after the application. Maximum relief was achieved between 30 to 60 days after the intervention. The highest rate of improvement (85.4%) was reported in sneezing, followed by nasal obstruction (76.4%) and nasal discharge (67.7%). The mean VAS scores showed a significant improvement in all symptoms between 7 to 180 days after the procedure (p<0.05). The rate of patient satisfaction was 90% for the relief of nasal obstruction and sneezing, and 80% for nasal discharge. Complaints about vasomotor rhinitis increased up to a severity near the pretreatment level in eight patients on the 180th postoperative day and the procedure was repeated.

These findings indicate that radiofrequency may be used as an alternative treatment option in patients with vasomotor rhinitis.