Young's syndrome: a further cause of chronic rhinosinusitis

Three males--aged 32, 35, and 27 years--presented Young's syndrome: a combination of obstructive azoospermia and chronic sinopulmonary infection. The evaluation of nasal mucociliary transport using an isotopic technique revealed mucociliary stasis in one case and decreased clearance in the others (< 2 mm/min). Ciliary ultrastructure was normal in two patients, while the other showed mucous hyperplasia and low ciliary density which made correct ciliary evaluation not possible. The clinical development of this syndrome is chronic, although less severe than in the other two syndromes that exhibit primary failure of mucociliary transport: cystic fibrosis and primary ciliary dyskinesia. Young's syndrome should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients suffering from chronic rhinosinusitis, particularly with cystic fibrosis and primary ciliary dyskinesia syndrome.