Comparative study on the effectiveness of Coblation-assisted turbinoplasty in allergic rhinitis

To evaluate the efficacy of adding Coblation-assisted inferior turbinoplasty to a medical treatment regimen for symptoms associated with hypertrophic inferior turbinates.

Prospective, open-label, non-randomized trial with outpatient treatment. Patients were assigned to treatment groups in order of enrolment into the study.

From June 2007 to June 2008, 220 patients with allergic rhinitis and hypertrophic inferior turbinates were enrolled and assigned into two groups: the surgical group who received radiofrequency thermal ablation inferior turbinoplasty and medical therapy, and the medical group who received medical therapy only. Groups were further divided into two allergen types based on antigen sensitivity: perennial and seasonal. Subjective complaints (nasal obstruction, itching, rhinorrhea, sneezing), clinical rhinoendoscopy and rhinomanometry tests results were recorded at the start of the study and 2 months post-treatment. Effect sizes for the mean improvements after treatment were tabulated for all groups.

All study outcomes improved within all groups. Comparison between medical and surgical groups showed higher improvement in both perennial and seasonal, respectively, in nasal obstruction, sneezing, rhinomanometry, and rhinomanometry after NPT. Itching improved only in perennial allergen type. Rhinoendoscopy clinical score showed improvement in surgical group over medical group in both allergen types.

Coblation-assisted turbinate reduction is a promising adjunct to medical therapy in patients with persistent symptoms associated with allergic rhinitis. Patients undergoing this surgery had greater reduction of symptoms than patients receiving medical therapy alone, where patients with perennial allergies appeared to benefit most.