Endoscopic Sinus Surgery in Older Patients With Chronic Rhinosinusitis: Meta-Analysis of Surgical Outcomes

BackgroundChronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a common condition that significantly impacts quality of life. While endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) has proven effective in the general adult population, its specific effectiveness in older patients remains understudied.ObjectiveThis meta-analysis assessed the therapeutic effect and safety of ESS in patients aged 55 years and older with CRS.MethodsFive electronic databases were queried: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. Therapeutic effectiveness of ESS was quantitatively assessed using random-effects meta-analysis, in which mean changes of pre- versus postoperative scores of the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test-22 (SNOT-22) were pooled. Meta-regression was conducted to predict the variability in SNOT-22 changes. Comparative meta-analyses evaluating surgical complications between older and younger adult patients were conducted.ResultsA total of 12 studies were synthesized. Both short- and long-term follow-up data demonstrated significant improvement by reference to baseline. Our analysis demonstrated statistically significant mean reduction in the SNOT-22 score by 21.4 points (95% confidence interval [CI], -26.9 to -15.9) at an average follow-up of approximately 9 months. This improvement exceeds the minimal clinically important difference for SNOT-22. The presence of nasal polyposis was a favorable prognostic indicator of SNOT-22 improvement (β = -0.21; P = .002). The rates of surgical adverse events among older patients were 4.2% for significant bleeding, 0.6% for orbital injury, and 0.2% for skull base injury. A significant difference between the two age groups was observed only in skull base injury (odds ratio = 2.98; 95% CI, 1.53-5.80; P < .001).ConclusionESS offers clinically significant benefits for older individuals, particularly those with nasal polyposis. It is a safe treatment option for CRS in the older patients, with outcomes largely comparable to those in younger adults, though certain risks, such as skull base injury, may be slightly higher in older populations.