Patients with nasal polyps present repeatedly in otorhinolaryngology practices, but the prevalence of nasal polyps in the general population is not known. Our objective was to investigate the prevalence of nasal polyps in an adult Swedish population in relation to age, gender, asthma, and aspirin intolerance. A random sample of 1,900 inhabitants over the age of 20 years, stratified for age and gender, was drawn from the municipal population register in Skövde, Sweden, in December 2000. The subjects were called to clinical visits that included questions about rhinitis, asthma, and aspirin intolerance and examination by nasal endoscopy. In total, 1,387 volunteers (73% of the sample) were investigated. The sample size was adequate, with a good fit to the whole population. The prevalence of nasal polyps was 2.7% (95% confidence interval, 1.9-3.5), and polyps were more frequent in men (2.2 to 1), the elderly (5% at > or = 60 years of age), and asthmatics. Subjective symptoms of aspirin intolerance were not found to correlate with polyps. Nasal polyps were more common in adults than was stated by the a priori estimate. The Skövde population-based study is considered representative for the Swedish population.

Various definitions have been proposed for the term 'chronic sinusitis' but too often reports on chronic sinusitis lack a definition. In order to improve the diagnosis and treatment of this disease, and also to facilitate comparisons between clinical investigations, definitions of 'chronic maxillary sinusitis' of either rhinogenous or dental origin are proposed. It is suggested that the differential diagnosis should be based upon the duration of symptoms, ENT and dental examinations, sinus radiographs and/or sinoscopy, and results of conservative treatment. In a study conducted over a 5-year period, 198 patients with 244 affected sinuses fulfilled the proposed criteria. The incidence of chronic maxillary sinusitis in the population was 0.02%. A dental cause was found in 40.6% of the sinuses. The dental cause could be confirmed by routine dental examination in only 43 of 99 cases, while an extended maxillo-dental examination was conclusive in the other cases (56/99). Marginal periodontitis was found as frequently as periapical granuloma and together they constituted 83% of all dental causes. Sinusitis of dental origin was rare before the age of 30. Every sixth patient was found to have nasal polyposis. When related to the number of affected sinuses, the incidence of nasal polyposis was 13.1% in sinusitis of dental origin and 23.4% in that of rhinogenous origin. The importance of close cooperation between the ENT specialist and the oral surgeon is stressed.

Nasal polyps alone, as seen occasionally, are indicative of airway disease involving the upper and lower respiratory tracts.

No abstract

We have previously compared different scoring systems for endoscopic staging of nasal polyps. Of the five methods evaluated, we found that two were better than the others with regard to reproducibility and agreement between physicians. One method was lateral imaging, developed by the authors, and the other was a scoring system developed by Lildholdt et al. The main objective of the present study was to compare the sensitivity of these two methods. Another aim was to study the effect on nasal polyposis of topical nasal corticosteroids over a 2-week period. Patients with bilateral nasal polyposis (n = 100) were randomized to a 2-week treatment with a topical corticosteroid (budesonide aqueous nasal spray: 128 microg b.i.d.) or placebo in a double-blind manner. Nasal symptoms were scored before treatment and after 3, 7 and 14 days of treatment, and the patients underwent nasal endoscopy at clinical visits. Patients treated with active substance had an improvement in their symptoms, an effect already detectable after 3 days of treatment, compared with those who received placebo. In addition, a statistically significant decrease in polyp size could be registered after 14 days using lateral imaging but not with the other scoring system. In conclusion, lateral imaging was more sensitive and could detect effects earlier than the other scoring system and can be recommended for the endoscopic staging of nasal polyps in clinical studies.