[Endoscopic removal of sinonasal tumors]

To evaluate the efficacy of endoscopic surgery for sinonasal tumors.

Clinical records of 20 patients (10 males, 10 females; mean age 34; range 12 to 63 years) who underwent endoscopic tumor resection with diagnosis of sinonasal tumor between January 1998 and August 2004 were retrospectively reviewed. Patients who were operated by transnasal endoscopic surgery or by combined (endoscopic or external) surgical methods were included in the study. Patients were reviewed for age, sex, pathologic diagnosis and tumor location, surgical techniques, need for additional surgery, complications, recurrence, and follow-up period.

There were five osteomas, one fibrous dysplasia, one ossifying fibroma, seven inverted papillomas, one oncocytic papilloma, three angiofibromas, one schwannoma, and one esthesioneuroblastoma. The patients follow-up period ranged between 6 months and 6 years (mean 26 months). The fibrous dysplasia involving the posterior ethmoid sinuses was subtotally resected due to its close proximity to the optic nerve. One inverted papilloma of the maxillary sinus was resected by a combined endoscopic and Caldwell-Luc approach. A combined endoscopic intranasal and external frontoethmoidectomy approach was performed for the removal of frontal sinus schwannoma. Recurrence was observed in one of the inverted papilloma cases. Total removal of the tumors was achieved in all other cases without any complications or recurrences.

Low recurrence rates in our series showed that endoscopic resection of nasal-paranasal sinus tumors in selected cases, may be an appropriate method as solely or in combined with other surgical techniques for experienced surgeons.