Endoscopic Management of Cerebrospinal Fluid Rhinorrhea

ABSTRACT

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) rhinorrhea has become a relatively common disease due to increasingincidents oftraffic accidents and endoscopic sinus surgeries, including skull base surgery. Improvements in surgical skills and endoscopicequipment have contributed to broadening the indicationsforendoscopic management ofCSF rhinorrhea. Precise identification of the etiology and leakage site is important for the treatment of CSF rhinorrhea. A variety of sealing techniques, such as overlay, underlay, and bath-plug, showed similar surgical outcomes. In addition, the type of graft material did not make a difference inthe surgical results. Therefore, thechoice of technique and graft material depends on the judgment of the surgeon. Endoscopic management of CSF rhinorrhea demonstrated anexcellent success rate and low morbidity. There were only few complications duringendoscopic management of CSF rhinorrhea and these were not serious. In conclusion, endoscopic management is effective for CSF rhinorrhea and should be initially considered for the treatment of CSF leakage.