Changes in the ocular and nasal cultures in patients who had undergone septoplasty.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to evaluate the microbiologic changes that occurred in the nasal and ocular mucosa before and after surgery in patients who had undergone septoplasty.

DESIGN

SETTING

Fifty-five patients who applied to our clinic with septal deviation were included in the study.

METHODS

Before and after the operation, samples were taken from the ocular and inner nasal mucosa for cultures and direct microscopic evaluation and the microbiologic changes were compared.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The results of ocular preoperative cultures were different from the results of postoperative cultures.

RESULTS

The most frequent microorganisms in all pre- and postoperative ocular and nasal cultures were similar; coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, and Diphtheroid spp were dominant. Following septoplasty, the rate of determining microorganisms in the eye in both microscopic evaluation and cultures had increased. In the postoperative period, the rate of growing S. aureus increased in ocular cultures (p < .01) while remaining the same in nasal cultures.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that ocular flora can indeed change following septoplasty; however, the risk of ocular infection is not increased. This is the first study to investigate the risk of ocular infection in addition to local nasal infection after septoplasty.