title: A clinical study of endoscopic sinus surgery for sinusitis in patients with bronchial asthma.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  An association between bronchial asthma and sinusitis has long been suspected. Our aim is to study the clinical features of chronic sinusitis associated with bronchial asthma as two manifestations of one airway disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a prospective analysis of the outcome of 88 patients, with or without bronchial asthma, who underwent endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) for chronic sinusitis. Patients were divided into two groups by the presence or absence of asthma and were evaluated. One surgeon performed the ESS, and the same postoperative treatment was given to both groups. The postoperative outcomes of symptoms and objective findings related to sinusitis were evaluated numerically, with a maximum score of 2 points for each examination item. Twenty-eight patients with asthma symptoms were assessed before and after surgery, using peak flow (liter/second) and medication scores (according to US Food and Drug Administration) to determine whether bronchial asthma was improved by first-time ESS.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The outcomes of ESS were significantly worse in the asthma group, especially the endonasal findings. Patients suffering from chronic sinusitis and bronchial asthma showed improvement following ESS in terms of their asthma symptoms, peak flow and medication score. Patients with a good ESS result tended to have the greatest improvement in their asthma.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that sinusitis and asthma are closely related to each other, acting as two manifestations of one airway disease. We recommend treating cases of sinusitis complicated by asthma as a single disease of the entire respiratory tract.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan. kdejima2002@yahoo.co.jp
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dejima
authors.forename: Takemitsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hama
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miyazaki
authors.forename: Shigenobu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Kazuto
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fukushima
authors.forename: Akihiro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oshima
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hisa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications* / Q000601:surgery*; D004724:Endoscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008443:Maxillary Sinus / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D012852:Sinusitis / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery*; D016896:Treatment Outcome