Does Endoscopic Sinus Surgery (ESS) Retrieve Mucociliary Clearance of Maxillary Sinus: Prospective Study at a Tertiary Care Hospital

To correlate Saccharin clearance time before and after endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) in chronic maxillary sinusitis patients. Hospital based prospective study done in the department of otorhinolaryngology at our tertiary care hospital from January 2017 to December 2017. We selected 40 patients based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. Saccharin clearance time was measured by the subjective perception of sweet taste following placement of saccharin pellet over the anterior end of inferior turbinate. It was measured preoperatively and postoperatively after 3 months of ESS and the values are compared with normal uninvolved sinuses of the patients. Out of 40 patients, 26 were male and 14 were female. Normal Saccharin Clearance Time was found to be 9.50 and 9.89 min with a standard deviation of 2.76 and 2.62 on the left and right side respectively. There was no significant difference between right and left side mucociliary clearance values. The respective mean preoperative and postoperative mucociliary clearance values of right and left side together were 39.5 min and 17.6 min among unilateral maxillary sinusitis patients, 49.69 min and 20.87 min among unilateral CRS with polyposis patients, 69.42 min and 25.97 min among bilateral maxillary sinusitis patients, 63.71 min and 24.21 min among CRS with bilateral polyposis patients. ESS not only treats the pathology of paranasal sinuses but also helps in returning the normal mucociliary function.