Patency of nasofrontal duct during the healing process of trephined acute frontal sinusitis. A clinical application of modern rhinomanometry.

Thirty-one patients suffering from acute frontal sinusitis were treated by trephination. The patency of the nasofrontal duct was measured daily via the ventilation tube by computerized rhinomanometry until the tube was removed. According to the air flow changes inside the frontal sinus during normal nasal breathing, the duct was assessed as open, partially open or obstructed. The further healing process was assessed by clinical and radiological examination during a two-month postoperative follow-up. Statistical analysis of the results shows that both the favourable healing process and recurrences can be predicted with this method to a very high level of significance. The method is simple and rapid and it helps to determine the correct time for the withdrawal of the irrigation tube in individual patients.