Corrective Nasal Surgery Seems Safe in Pediatric Patients

MONDAY, Feb. 10, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Nasal corrective surgery prior to adolescence is safe for select pediatric patients with nasal obstruction and deformity, according to research published online Feb. 6 in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.

Eelam Adil, M.D., from Pennsylvania State University in Hershey, and colleagues retrospectively reviewed medical charts for all male patients younger than 16 years and female patients younger than 14 years seen by a single doctor at a tertiary referral center from August 1996 to August 2012 for septoplasty or corrective nasal surgery.

The researchers found that, for the 54 pediatric patients included in the study, the most common indications for surgery were posttraumatic deformities (36 patients) and severe airway obstruction (48 patients). Of the patients with severe nasal airway obstruction, 15 did not have a documented history of trauma. During a mean follow-up period of 646 days, no patients underwent a revision procedure for unsatisfactory results.

"Children with nasal obstruction and deformity can safely undergo nasal corrective surgery prior to adolescence," the authors write. "Special considerations include preserving normal structures and the judicious use of grafts."

Abstract
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