Review of Published Results for Endoscopic Sinus Surgery

Chronic sinusitis is one of the more common chronic diseases in the United States. Over the past decade endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) has become more common than ethmoidectomy and inferior meatal nasoantral windows. A review of the recent ESS literature, including 10 large series with a total of 1,713 patients, shows a 91% improvement rate. Subjectively, 63% of patients reported a very good result, 28% a good result, and 9% an unsatisfactory result. Twelve percent of patients required revision surgery. Major complications occurred in 1.6% of patients. Objective evaluation of the effectiveness of ESS, through the use of sinus CT, endoscopy, rhinometry, and olfactory testing, has shown mixed results.