Laser Corrects Blockage of Deviated Septum

A new laser procedure requires only a local anesthetic and is effective in treating nasal obstruction associated with a deviated septum, according to an article in the July-September 2002 issue of the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery.

Traditional surgery uses a scalpel to cut away flaps inside the nose and reshape the cartilage manually. Stitches are needed to close the surgical wounds. The new procedure uses a laser to heat the malformations until they are soft enough to be pressed or formed so that they are no longer blocking the nasal passageways. Researchers at Moscow State University (Russia) and colleagues used the laser procedure on 110 patients between 11 and 66 years old. The patients were followed for an average of 18 months.

The laser procedure lasted only six to eight minutes. The researchers found that 84 (76%) of the patients had an improvement in their airways and with symptoms associated with nasal blockages. The septal cartilage in all of the patients tended to recover some of the initial deformity after seven to 10 days. Two to three weeks later, the cartilage began to restraighten, and the septum reached a stable shape after three to four weeks. This shape change remained stable for two to three years. In 27 patients (24%), abnormalities treated with the laser resumed their original shapes. These patients had spurs or other abnormalities, did not receive uniform heating of the cartilage, and had other disorders, such as rhinitis, a chronic allergic condition causing breathing problems,

"Our results in 110 patients using this new laser-based procedure to reshape the nasal septum may provide an alternative to classic operations for reducing morbidity, operating room times, and the economic impact of time lost from work,” said Yuri Ovchinnikov, M.D., of Moscow State University.




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