A New Approach to Objective Evaluation of the Success of Nasal Septum Perforation

BACKGROUND: Perforations in the nasal septum (NSP) give rise not only to disintegration of the septum anatomy but also impairment in normal nasal physiology. The successes of these surgical techniques are usually equated to anatomical closure of the perforation. The goal of this study is to evaluate the subjective and objective results of our surgical technique for septal perforation surgery. METHODS: All NSPs in the six patients were closed by inferior turbinate flap. The Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE) instrument was used to evaluate the preoperative and postoperative subjective sensation of nasal obstruction. Measurement of preoperative and postoperative nasal airway resistance was performed using active anterior rhinomanometry which is an objective test. Wilcoxson signed rank test and Spearman correlation test were used to analyze correlation between NOSE scores and rhinomanometric measurements. RESULTS: The full closure of the septal perforations was noted in 100% of patients. The total NOSE score was 14 preoperatively and one postoperatively. The improvement in NOSE scores was statistically significant (P< or =0.002). The mean preoperative total resistance (ResT150) value was 0.13 Pa/cm(3)s(-1), which is below the normal range (0.16-0.31 Pa/cm(3)s(-1)), while the mean postoperative ResT150 value was 0.27 Pa/cm3s-1. The correlation between the improvement in NOSE scores and improvements in ResT150 values was statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical approaches should aim to solve both the anatomical and physiological problems of NSP. The application of subjective and objective tests in the postoperative period will help surgeons assess the applied techniques.

Oxidative stress in patients with chronic renal failure: efects of hemodialysis

To investigate blood oxidative status of patients with chronic renal failure [CRF] and possible effects of hemodialysis on the development of oxidative stress in blood. Materials and The levels of malondialdehyde [MDA] and oxidation resistance [OR] values were measured in blood plasma, erythrocyte hemolysate and erythrocyte membrane fractions of 33 patients with CRF and of 12 healthy controls. Of the 33 patients, 17 subjects were under hemodialysis treatment. MDA levels were found to be increased in all blood fractions of the patients. OR values were unchanged in erythrocyte hemolysates but decreased in plasma and erythrocyte membrane fractions of the CRF patients. Moreover, erythrocyte MDA levels were determined to be higher in hemodialyzed patients compared with both controls and non-hemodialyzed patients. OR values were lower in all blood fractions of the hemodialyzed patients relative to controls and non-hemodialyzed patients. Results suggest that there is a significant oxidative stress [expressed as peroxidation] in blood samples from patients with CRF, which is further exacerbated by hemodialysis