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Does Surgery for Nasal Obstruction Improve Eustachian Tube Dysfunction?

by Celina Virgen, MD, MPH, Tuleen Sawaf, BS, Bryan Renslo, BS, and Alexander G. Chiu, MD •

TRIO Best Practice

TRIO Best Practice articles are brief, structured reviews designed to provide the busy clinician with a handy outline and reference for day-to-day clinical decision making. The ENTtoday summary below includes the Background and Best Practice sections of the original article. To view the complete Laryngoscope article free of charge, visit Laryngoscope.

BACKGROUND

Eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD) is often associated with nasal obstruction and inferior turbinate hypertrophy (ITH). Symptoms commonly associated with ETD, such as ear pressure, pain, fullness, dizziness, or tinnitus, can also be seen in patients with nasal obstruction. Controversy currently exists on whether nasal surgery is warranted as an option for patients with nasal obstruction and ETD symptoms. This review outlines the recent evidence regarding surgical management of nasal obstruction with ITH and the impact on ETD.

BEST PRACTICE

Current evidence on the surgical management of nasal obstruction with ITH for ETD may provide some benefit in improving ETD symptoms; however, due to the lack of prospective studies with a control group, definitive benefit cannot be shown, as the single study with a sham control group showed no difference in symptoms. Further studies are necessary to evaluate the role of nasal surgery in this patient population.