Trans-nasal Endoscopic Sphenopalatine Artery Ligation in Epistaxis: Coblation Versus Electrocauterization

Epistaxis is one of the most common emergencies encountered by otorhinolaryngologist. Although anterior epistaxis is easy to manage but posterior epistaxis is usually refractory. Transnasal endoscopic sphenopalatine artery ligation (TESPAL) is now a well established surgical technique for the management of refractory epistaxis. Electrocauterization and clipping are the most common methods used for ligation. Coblation is an upcoming tool with promising results in endoscopic skull base surgeries and tonsillectomies but has not been explored much in TESPAL. It was a randomised observational study.50 patients of refractory epistaxis were included in the study. The patients were divided into 2 groups. Group A underwent TESPAL using electrocauterization while Group B underwent TESPAL using coblation. The data was collected and analysed for various parameters like experience of the surgeon, time taken for surgery, episodes of rebleeding and postoperative crusting. Out of 50 cases in our study 27 were males and 23 were females. Most common age group was 60-70 years (68%). Most common cause was hypertension (86%). Surgeons were happy 21/25 times in coblation group compared to 9/25 times in electrocauterization group. There were 4/25 rebleeding episodes in electrocauterization group compared to none in coblation group. Post-operative crusting was also less in coblation group compared to electrocauterization. Though electrocauterization is a well established method for TESPAL our experience with coblation in TESPAL has been extremely satisfying. We suggest our colleagues to conduct more research studies on use of coblation in TESPAL to reach a consensus.