Turbinoplasty Versus Medical Treatment for Allergic Rhinitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Allergic rhinitis is a common chronic condition affecting up to 30% of adults worldwide, with nasal obstruction being the most bothersome symptom. Inferior turbinate hypertrophy is a major contributor to nasal obstruction in allergic rhinitis, and surgical reduction techniques have been developed for cases refractory to medical therapy. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the efficacy of inferior turbinate reduction procedures compared with medical therapy alone in patients with allergic rhinitis.

PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Library.

We systematically searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus, and Cochrane Library from inception to March 2026 for comparative studies comparing inferior turbinate reduction versus medical therapy in patients with allergic rhinitis and inferior turbinate hypertrophy. R software was used for meta-analysis using a random-effects model.

Six studies comprising 574 participants were included. For rhinorrhea, the pooled effect of studies comparing turbinoplasty versus medical treatment was nonsignificant with high heterogeneity. Sneezing showed no significant difference. Itching also demonstrated a nonsignificant effect. Turbinoplasty alone improved nasal obstruction compared to medical treatment.

Turbinoplasty may improve nasal obstruction in patients with allergic rhinitis refractory to medical therapy. The evidence for other nasal symptoms (rhinorrhea, sneezing, itching) is less consistent due to substantial heterogeneity. These findings should be considered preliminary and future trials are needed to validate them.