Surgical techniques of the inferior nasal turbinates in the treatment of nasal obstruction

: Chronic nasal obstruction causes sleep disorders and has an adverse effect on quality of life. Inferior turbinate enlargement due to hypersensitive rhinitis is one of the main causes of chronic nasal obstruction. Many of these cases respond to topical corticosteroids. Long standing swelling may become irreversible and a surgical approach to enlarged turbinate becomes necessary. In septal deviation, a compensatory enlargement of contralateral inferior turbinate may indicate reduction at the time of septoplasty. A number of techniques for turbinate reduction have been described. Main target for the operation is submucosal soft tissue and less frequently bony tissue. Radiofrequency ablation, submucosal operation techniques and microdebrider techniques are the methods of choise in reducing inferior turbinate with diminished adverse side effects.