Bacteriology of ethmoid sinus in chronic sinusitis

This study was designed to study the bacteriology of the ethmoid sinus in chronic sinusitis with a new sampling method to decrease nasal contamination. The anterior nose was disinfected with povidone-iodine solution. Then, the sample of ethmoid sinus was obtained with a cotton-tip stick through a cannula that was put into the ethmoid cavity after removing ethmoid bulla. Thirty-nine patients of chronic sinusitis were included with a total of 69 specimens. Fifty-eight bacterial isolates were recovered. The cultural rate was 60.9%. The most frequently isolated bacteria were Streptococcus viridans, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Proteus mirabilis, and Hemophilus parainfluenzae. Conversely, only three isolates of Staphylococcus epidermidis were obtained. The results show that the new sampling method used in this study could decrease the chance of nasal contamination and might, at the same time, make the study of the bacteriology of the ethmoid sinus more accurate.