Post-operative nocturnal hypoxia in septoplasty: the value of nasal packing with airway tubes.

Nasal obstruction influences respiration during sleep and post-operative nasal packing may cause nocturnal oxygen desaturation and obstructive sleep apnoea. In order to investigate the influence of nasal packing with airway tubes on post-operative hypoxia during sleep, the oxygen saturation was monitored perioperatively in 18 patients, undergoing septoplasty followed by nasal packing using Merocel packs with airway tubes. For the group as a whole, no significant perioperative change of either median minimal or median mean oxygen desaturation could be demonstrated. A similar, non-significant perioperative prolongation of the relative time of nocturnal oxygen desaturation, expressed as per cent of the total nocturnal observation time, was seen. The results indicate that nasal packing with airway tubes may prevent post-operative hypoxia during sleep, but further investigation of post-operative nocturnal hypoxia and nasal packs, is needed.