Inferior turbinate hypertrophy is one of many causes of nasal obstruction and can be a contributing factor to obstructive sleep apnea.
On this page:
Pathology
Etiology
- allergic rhinitis (most common)
- vasomotor rhinitis
- drug-induced rhinitis
Treatment and prognosis
Pharmacological treatment (e.g. topical nasal decongestant) is first-line and if this fails then partial turbinectomy or inferior turbinate reduction (with, for example, electrocautery, radiofrequency ablation) can be performed 1.
Practical points
Assessing for other or contributing factors to nasal obstruction such as 1:
- nasal septal deviation (can contribute to contralateral inferior turbinate hypertrophy 2)
- sinonasal polyposis
- adenoid hypertrophy