[Endonasal ethmoidectomy in the treatment of polyposis]

The authors report their experience with 210 microsurgical ethmoidectomies carried out in 109 patients between 1980 and 1987. In 23 patients the anatomy was considerably modified due to previous surgery. Asthma was present in 56 patients and 25 patients suffered from Widal's syndrome. The complications noted included 1 case of meningitis cured by antibiotics and a case of transient diplopia. Patients were monitored for 1 to 6 years; In 69 cases no recurrence was noted (63% of cases), 31 patients (28%) only required minor local procedures for slight recurrence (28%). On the other hand, 6 patients (5.5%) required a second surgical procedure for recurrence between 3 and 6 years.