CT SCAN EVALUATION OF CONCHA BULLOSA AND ITS CORRELATION WITH DEVIATED NASAL SEPTUM – A PROSPECTIVE STUDY

Abstract

Introduction : Osteomeatal unit is a functional unit of the anterior ethmoid complex representing the final common pathway for the drainage and ventilation of the frontal, maxillary and anterior ethmoid cells .Osteomeatal complex has become an area of active radiologic and pathophysiologic investigation with the development of endoscopic sinus surgery for inflammatory sinus disease. The aim of this study was to investigate the anatomical vari Aim : ation of the middle turbinate concha bullosa , incidence of concha bullosa and its correlation with nasal septal deviation. based on paranasal sinus imaging. A prospective study was performed in the Department of ENT and Materials and Methods : Head Neck Surgery over a period of 5 years, to determine the prevalence of Concha bullosa in patients who presented to our out patient department with symptoms of nasal obstruction, headache, post nasal drainage and facial pain , and underwent CT scan of Paranasal sinuses. We evaluated 462 CT images both coronal and axial planes with a 1-3-mm slice thickness. Out of the CT scans studied of the nose and paranasal sinus of 462 patients, the prevalen Results : ce of concha bullosa was 25.5 % (118) patients .Male predominance was seen with 63 (53.3%) patients and 55 (46.6%) female patients. Concha bullosa was bilateral in 21 (17.7%) patients, and unilateral in 76 (64.4 %) patients. Mixed or extensive type of concha bullosa was seen in 56 (47.4%) patients followed by 35 (29.7%) patients having lamellar type and 27 (22.9%) patients with bulbous type.Out of 118 cases of CB, 43 (36.4%) were on left side of which 29 (67.4%) patients showed deviation of the nasal septum to right and 33 (27.9%) were on right side of which 21 (63.3%) patients had a nasal septal deviation to left. We found that there is a strong relationship between the presence of unila Conclusion : teral or dominant Concha bullosa and contralateral nasal deviation.