Prognosis and prediction of response to surgery in allergic patients with chronic sinusitis.
BACKGROUND
Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) occurs frequently in patients with atopy, but little is known of the prognosis after surgery and of factors that may predict a poor outcome.


OBJECTIVE
Our purpose was to assess the long-term prognosis in atopic patients with CRS who undergo surgery and whether certain immune markers could predict a worse prognosis in this setting.


METHODS
Fifteen patients with diffuse involvement of the sinuses on computed tomographic (CT) scan but without nasal polyposis underwent ethmoidectomy with middle meatotomy for CRS when it was clinically indicated. All patients had a biopsy of the inferior turbinate and of the most inflamed areas of the maxillary and ethmoid sinuses at the time of surgery. Follow-up was performed by video endoscopy and by assessment of 2 chronic sinusitis questionnaires at 0, 6, and 24 months postoperatively. The number of lymphocyte subsets (CD3, CD4, CD8), mast cells and eosinophils, and cells expressing IL-4 and IL-5 messenger RNA (mRNA) in all 3 biopsy sites at the time of surgery were compared with the clinical response after surgery.


RESULTS
Seven patients had persistent improvement after surgery, with a decrease in pain, rhinorrhea, or nasal obstruction and a decrease in the need for medication. Eight patients were unchanged or worsened after surgery with disabling rhinorrhea and repeated sinusitis. We found no difference in the number of inflammatory cells, lymphocyte subsets, or IL-4 mRNA-positive cells in the sinus mucosa between responders and nonresponders. However, an increased number of cells expressing IL-5 mRNA was found in the ethmoid sinus at the time of surgery in patients who did not respond to the surgical intervention (P =.007).


CONCLUSIONS
More than 50% of patients with perennial rhinitis and CRS do not improve after surgery, a response that may be predicted by more cells expressing IL-5 mRNA in the ethmoid sinuses. The increased number of cells expressing IL-5 mRNA may have the potential to be used as a marker for prediction of the response to surgery. The worsening of symptoms in some patients with CRS after sinus surgery could be a result of the disturbance of the anatomy of the sinuses and exposure to the environmental allergens.
Lavigne
F
F
Centre Hospitalier de l'Universitaire de Montréal, Notre-Dame Hospital, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Nguyen
C T
CT
Cameron
L
L
Hamid
Q
Q
Renzi
P M
PM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016516:CD4-CD8 Ratio; D002908:Chronic Disease; D015521:Ethmoid Sinusitis / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006969:Hypersensitivity, Immediate / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D015523:Maxillary Sinusitis / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012220:Rhinitis / Q000150:complications*; D014420:Turbinates / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery