[Effect of nasal septal suture versus nasal packing after septoplasty].

OBJECTIVE

Patients undergone septoplasty, which is one of the most common procedures, always feel very painful after surgery because of routine nasal packing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of septal suture technique without nasal packing after septoplasty.

METHOD

Eighty patients who had undergone septoplasty were included in this study. The patients were allocated into tow groups: packing group, mercel was used for nasal packing after septoplasty and inferior turbinate coblation; suturing group, septal suture and inferior turbinate coblation were performed after septoplasty without nasal packing. Postoperative signs and symptoms(visual analogue scale,VAS) were compared between the two groups.

RESULT

The patients of packing group experienced significantly more postoperative nasal pain, headache, dysphagia, sleep disturbance and bleeding after surgery (P < 0.01). No difference of epiphora was found between the two groups. More pain and bleeding were experienced during the pack removal(packing group), compared to that during the clearance of nasal cavity (suturing group ). One patient with postoperative septal hematoma was found in the packing group.

CONCLUSION

Nasal septum suture combined with inferior turbinate coblation might be a significantly more comfortable, reliable alternative to nasal packing. Nasal packing is not the necessary application for septoplasty.