Effects of systemic steroids on life quality in sinonasal polyposis.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effectiveness of short-term glucocorticoid therapy on nasal polyposis.

METHODOLOGY: A total of 60 patients with sinonasal polyposis were given oral glucocorticoid therapy (1 mg/kg) for 20 days. Patient symptoms were evaluated with the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test 20 (SNOT-20). Computerized tomography (CT) images of the paranasal sinus were acquired before and after treatment and were evaluated with the Kennedy scoring system.

RESULTS

Evaluation of paranasal CTs showed complete disease resolution in 15 patients and partial disease resolution in 25 patients. Patients with complete and partial resolutions,based on CT images, exhibited significant decreases in disease stages. Statistical analysis revealed a significant change in the SNOT-20 results (P < 0.01). There were no statistically significant differences among the evaluations based on the paranasal sinus CTs, the SNOT-20, and the SNOT-20 combined with a subjective selection of the five most disturbing symptoms (SNOT-20(+5)) (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The results showed a strong correlation between radiological changes and improvements in quality of life, assessed with the SNOT-20 or the SNOT-20(+5).