Electrophysiological assessment of the concentration and attention in patient with nasal polyposis

Nasal polyposis is a chronic disease presenting with nasal obstruction as the most frequent complaint. It has been documented that nasal polyposis results in deterioration of quality of life and disturbances of sleep. However, remarkable consequences of nasal polyposis such as psychological and cognitive outcomes are relatively poorly studied.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether there is an impairment of concentration and attention in nasal polyposis patients due to hypoxia caused by nasal obstruction.

This cross-sectional, case-control study was carried out on 30 male patients with nasal polyps and 30 healthy subjects serving as controls. Participant ages were 41.6 ± 10.2 years in the nasal polyps group and 41.3 ± 6.2 in the control group. All participants underwent systemic, neurological, and otorhinolaryngological examinations together with routine hematological and biochemical tests. Patients with nasal polyposis had bilateral complete obstruction of nasal cavity. P300 component of electroencephalography-derived event related potentials were used to monitor concentration and attention. Nasal polyposis and control groups were compared in terms of amplitude and latency of P300.

There were significant differences between control and nasal polyposis groups in terms of latency of P300 (p < 0.001). Nasal polyposis patient latencies in P300 were longer than controls (345.8 ± 16.6 msec, 309.3 ± 16.6 msec, respectively). However, there were no significant differences between control and nasal polyposis groups in terms of amplitude of P300 (p > 0.05).

Results of the current study indicate that hypoxia due to complete nasal obstruction may result in impairment of attention and concentration in nasal polyposis patients. Assessment of patients with P300 latency subcomponent can be a useful diagnostic tool to detect cognitive and psychological consequences.