Symptoms treatment for allergic rhinitis using diode laser: results after 6-year follow-up

Allergic rhinitis is a very common chronic disease. The purpose of this study was to measure the outcome of treating allergic rhinitis with diode laser, over a long-term follow-up of 6 years. Forty-two consecutive patients with newly diagnosed allergic rhinitis that was refractive to conservative medical therapies were enrolled in the study. Treatment was with a diode laser (wavelength 805 nm, laser parameter 12 W, in 'contact' mode) under local anesthesia between September 1999 and May 2000. A quality of life questionnaire was used after a follow-up period of 6 years to assess the outcome of diode laser surgery. All 42 patients suffered from either perennial or persistent-type allergic rhinitis. Twenty-five out of 42 patients (60%) replied to the questionnaire 6 years after laser surgery. The mean operation time was 1 min 28 s for each patient. No complications were observed (e.g., major bleeding), and no nasal packing was necessary. Statistical analysis revealed significant improvements in symptom score, medication score and total score 6 years after laser surgery. A total of 60% of the patients described improvements in symptom scores, and 68% of the patients described improvements in total score 6 years after laser treatment. It was evident that the effectiveness of laser surgery persisted through the 6 years of follow-up. Long-term follow-up after 6 years confirmed that diode laser surgery for allergic rhinitis is a useful procedure that has a long-lasting effect and can be performed in an outpatient surgery under local anesthesia. Minimal discomfort, long-term effectiveness and short operation time are other reasons why this treatment should be selected for patients with allergic rhinitis that is refractive to conservative management.

Short-term effect of argon plasma coagulation of the inferior turbinate in patients with perennial nasal allergy

The aim of this study was to clarify the short-term effects of argon plasma coagulation (APC) of the inferior turbinate in patients with perennial nasal allergy. In a retrospective study, 32 patients with perennial allergic rhinitis were treated by inferior turbinate reduction using APC. Grades of nasal stuffiness, rhinorrhea, sneezing, nasal airflow resistance (NAR) and overall seriousness were evaluated before and then 1-4 and 8 weeks after APC. Subjective symptoms were assessed using a questionnaire in which nasal stuffiness, rhinorrhea and sneezing were graded on a four-point scale (severe, moderate, mild and none) using the Severity Criteria of Symptoms of Nasal Allergy issued by the Japanese Society of Allergology. NAR was measured using active anterior rhinomanometry (AAR) at the 100 Pa point; this was deemed to be an objective measurement of nasal obstruction. The numbers of patients examined before and 1-4 and 8 weeks after APC were 32, 31, 25, 17, 18 and 14, respectively. Both nasal stuffiness and NAR were significantly improved 2 weeks after APC, overall seriousness was significantly improved after 3 weeks and rhinorrhea was improved after 4 weeks. Sneezing did not significantly improve during this study. There was no significant change in the grades of the examined parameters during the period between 4 and 8 weeks after APC. The beneficial effects of APC begin to appear within 2 weeks after APC and no further improvement after about 4 weeks.