Some remarks on nasal polyposis

After a short historical and literature review the authors present their definition of nasal polyposis. The importance of CT scanning is stressed and the results of a CT-scan study of 350 patients with nasal complaints is presented. The authors discuss the incidence of sinusitis, presence of polypi and nasal anomalies in this population. Furthermore 111 biopsies of nasal polypi were studied and the cellular content, the ducts, glands, veins, aspect of the basal membrane and epithelial layer were described. As an oral ASA provocation test can be hazardous, the authors tested a nasal provocation test with acetylsalicylic acid. Although the test showed some interesting results, the reproducibility was poor. Finally the authors conclude that endoscopy and CT-scanning enable the diagnosis of nasal polyposis in an early stage of the disease.