Antibiotics and nasal surgery.

Despite the widespread use of prophylactic antibiotics in nasal surgery, the subject has been paid little attention in the literature. In a retrospective analysis of 210 patients who underwent septal surgery or a rhinoplasty, only 5 developed minor infections. Patients undergoing septal surgery or rhinoplasty (174) were evaluated in a randomized sequence, prospectively, to study the efficacy of systemic antibiotic prophylaxis. Only 4 patients developed minor infections; and 173 patients demonstrated no clinical nor radiographic evidence of subsequent sinusitis. The incidence of infectious complications resulting from intranasal surgery is not sufficient to warrant the use of prophylactic antibiotics. Furthermore, proof of their effectiveness in preventing such infections is lacking.