Septoplasty: early (first year) and late (fourth year) post-operative results in 604 patients.

Objective: As prospective outcomes of septoplasty with or without turbinoplasty beyond the first year are few and have diverging results, this study evaluated later septoplasty results three to four years post-operatively.
Methods: Patients undergoing septoplasty completed the Nasal Surgical Questionnaire pre-operatively, and at 6-12 months (early post-operative assessment) and 36-48 months (late post-operative assessment) after surgery. Primary outcome was visual analogue scale ratings for nasal obstruction (with a scale ranging from 0 to 100).
Results: In 604 patients with high response rates, the largest improvements in nasal obstruction were from pre-operative to early post-operative assessments (daytime score reduction = 33.9, night-time reduction 40.5). Nasal obstruction ratings worsened slightly between early and late post-operative assessments (daytime score increase = 5.3, night-time score increase = 9.7). Improvements were better in patients aged over 35 years and in those with pre-operative nasal obstruction scores of more than 62. There were no differences based on surgery type, septal deviation, allergy or smoking.
Conclusion: Septoplasty improves nasal obstruction in both the first and the fourth year after surgery. Post-operative improvements decline slightly over time but remain significant.