A comparison of partial inferior turbinectomy and cryosurgery for hypertrophic inferior turbinates.

A variety of surgical procedures are performed for treatment of hypertrophic inferior turbinates, but there is no completely effective therapy. We evaluated subjectively and objectively 52 patients who underwent one of two procedures: partial inferior turbinectomy (PIT) or cryosurgery of the inferior turbinates (CS). The results of PIT showed good functional results in 77 per cent of cases for long-term effectiveness. The results of CS showed that effectiveness was reduced from a 62 per cent success rate after one year to 35 per cent later, but CS was a simple procedure which was performed on an outpatient basis with no post-operative morbidity.