title: Subjective, anatomical, and functional nasal evaluation of patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Studies have shown a high occurrence of nasal alterations in patients with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS), but no studies have used different methods to evaluate the nose of patients with OSAS. The objective of this study was to evaluate the nose of patients with OSAS, compare them to controls, and correlate the different methods used to evaluate the nose.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-seven patients with moderate/severe OSAS and 20 controls who were matched for gender, age, and body mass index were included. Questionnaires regarding sleep and nasal symptoms, physical examination, rhinoscopy, nasofibroscopy, nasal inspiratory peak flow (NIPF), and acoustic rhinometry (AR) measurements were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the OSAS group, 33 (70.2%) were male, with a mean age of 53.2 ± 9.1 years. In the control group, 13 (65%) were male, with a mean age of 53.7 ± 9.7 years. The OSAS group had a higher score on the nasal symptoms scale (p < 0.01) and a higher frequency of nasal alterations [presence of septal deviation, clinical complaints (p = 0.01) and hypertrophy of the inferior nasal turbinate (p < 0.01)]. The NIPF and AR parameters could not differentiate between the OSAS and control groups. There were no significant correlations among the different methods used to evaluate the nose. Lower NIPF values were capable of predicting higher apnea-hypopnea index scores (p = 0.007).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Clinical complaints and nasal alterations as measured by rhinoscopy and nasofibroscopy were associated with the presence of OSAS, which was not the case for the NIPF and AR parameters. The results of different evaluation methods were not correlated with each other.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Otorrinolaringologia e Cirurgia de Cabeça Pescoço, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. tatividigal@yahoo.com.br
authors.forename: Tatiana
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: de Aguiar Vidigal
authors.forename: Fernanda Louise
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Martinho Haddad
authors.forename: Luiz Carlos
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Gregório
authors.forename: Dalva
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Poyares
authors.forename: Sérgio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tufik
authors.forename: Lia Rita
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Azeredo Bittencourt
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil; D006970:Disorders of Excessive Somnolence / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D004724:Endoscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D001239:Inhalation / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009296:Nasal Cavity / Q000503:physiopathology; D015508:Nasal Obstruction / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017286:Polysomnography; D012016:Reference Values; D023842:Rhinometry, Acoustic; D020181:Sleep Apnea, Obstructive / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires