Comparing Nasal Patency Outcomes in Patients Undergoing Septoplasty with Radiofrequency Turbinate Reduction, Turbinectomy, or Valvuloplasty: A Prospective Cohort Study

Introduction: The aim of this study was to compare long-term postoperative nasal airflow and symptom improvement using both subjective and objective nasal patency outcomes after three common different types of surgical interventions in patients with nasal obstruction, aimed at reducing nasal obstruction. Methods: This is a single-center prospective cohort study on 105 patients performed in a tertiary rhinology center, who underwent one of three interventions: septoplasty with radiofrequency turbinate reduction, septoplasty with turbinectomy, or septoplasty with valvuloplasty, aimed at improving nasal patency. Results: All three groups showed statically significant postoperative improvement of the Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation scale (NOSE) and Peak Nasal Inspiratory Flow measurement (PNIF) values that increased in time, with a markedly increased effect sustained during the six months of follow-up compared to baseline measurements (p = 0.001, Friedman’s two-way test). Intergroup analysis showed that septoplasty combined with radiofrequency turbinate reduction showed superior nasal patency results after three months (p = 0.001, Kruskal–Wallis test); however, all three groups had a similar result at the six-month follow-up. Conclusions: All surgical techniques in patients with anatomic nasal obstruction led to favorable postoperative subjective and objective nasal patency outcomes. However, the impact of any specific additional procedure alongside septoplasty may be limited in long-term follow-up.