Clinical Characteristics and Treatment Outcome of Benign Tumors of the Nose and Paranasal Sinuses: Experiences of Past 13 Years in Asan Medical Center

Kim, Young Jin; Han, Kwang Woo; Chung, Yoo Sam; Jang, Yong Ju; Lee, Bong Jae

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Benign and malignant tumors are occasionally found in the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses. Authors aimed to investigate the incidence and characteristics of benign sino-nasal tumors. MATERIALS AND METHOD: From 1990 through 2002, 197 cases of benign sino-nasal tumors (156 men and 41 women) were diagnosed and managed at the Department of Otolaryngology, Asan Medical Center. We reviewed medical records of patients to find out their presentations, diagnostic considerations, therapeutic options, and outcomes. Patients were followed up sixteen months postoperatively on the average. RESULTS: The most common symptom was nasal obstruction, and the mass was mainly placed in the middle meatus. There were 129 cases (67.2%) of inverted papilloma, 19 cases (9.9%) of osteoma, 13 cases (6.8%) of Angiofibroma, 5 cases (2.6%) of hemangioma. All the tumors were surgically removed, and preoperative embolization was performed only for angiofibroma. For the treatment of inverted papilloma, medial maxillectomy had been the main surgical methods until 1997 (54 cases); however, most cases have been managed with endonasal endoscopic techniques since 1998. Only three patients experienced surgical complications and tumor recurrence was observed in six patients with inverted papilloma associated with carcinoma. CONCLUSION: Inverted papilloma is the most common benign tumor in the sino-nasal tract, followed by osteoma and angiofibroma. Endonasal endoscopic surgery, with its many advantages, may be able to replace the conventional external approach for the treatment of tumors in the sino-nasal tract.