Rhinosinusitis Disability Index Scores Research Articles

Efficiency of Oral Steroids and Steroidal Nasal Spray in Treatment of Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A Comparative Study

ABSTRACT Objective: To assess how well steroidal nasal sprays and oral steroids work for treating CRS. Methods: Two hundred patients with CRS were included in a randomized controlled experiment. The patients were split into two groups: Group B received steroidal nasal sprays (fluticasone propionate 110 mcg/day in each nostril for 12 weeks) and Group A received oral steroids (prednisolone 30 mg/day for 14 days, followed by tapering over 7 days). The “Sino-Nasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22)” was used to quantify improvement in symptoms, the “Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI)” was used to measure quality of life, and the recurrence rate was measured at the 6-month follow-up. Results: At 12 weeks, SNOT-22 and RSDI scores significantly improved with both oral steroids and steroidal nasal sprays (P < 0.05). At the 6-month follow-up, however, oral steroids had a greater recurrence rate (25% vs. 12%, P = 0.02) when compared to steroidal nasal sprays. The two groups’ adverse effects were similar and of low severity. Conclusion: In conclusion, nasal sprays containing steroids seem to be a safer and more successful option than oral steroids for treating CRS, making them worthy of being used as the first line of treatment.

Chemokine CCL19 and Its Receptors CCR7 and CCRL1 in Chronic Rhinosinusitis.

CCL19 has been shown to predict disease severity in COVID-19 and treatment response in rheumatoid arthritis. CCL19 can exert both pro- and anti-inflammatory effects and is elevated in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). However, its role in CRS remains unknown. This study sought to determine the transcriptional changes in CCL19, its receptors, and associated cytokines and their association with disease severity in CRS. A clinical database of control subjects and patients with CRS was examined. Lund-Kennedy, Lund-Mackay, Sinonasal Outcomes Test 22 (SNOT-22), and rhinosinusitis disability index (RSDI) scores were collected at enrollment. mRNA was extracted from sinonasal tissues and subjected to multiplex gene expression analysis. Gene transcript differences between patients with CRS and controls were compared and correlated with disease severity metrics. Immunohistochemical analyses of CCL19, CCR7, and CCRL1 were conducted to compare differences in protein expression between cohorts. A subgroup analysis was performed to compare transcriptional and protein expression difference between patients with (CRSwNP) and without (CRSsNP) nasal polyps and controls. Thirty-eight subjects (control group, n=7; CRS group, n=31) were included in this study. CCRL1 (p=0.0093) and CCR7 (p=0.017) levels were significantly elevated in CRS compared to those in controls. CCL19 (p=0.038) and CCR7 (p=0.0097) levels were elevated in CRSwNP and CCRL1 was elevated in CRSsNP (p=0.0004). CCR7 expression was significantly elevated in sinonasal epithelial cells in CRSwNP (p=0.04). CCL19 expression was positively correlated with TNFA expression (p<0.0002). CCL19 and CCR7 expression was positively correlated with SNOT-22 and RSDI scores (p<0.05). CCL19 and CCR7 may modulate TNF-α-driven pro-inflammatory signaling and contribute to increased disease severity in CRS. Mechanistic studies are required to further elucidate the role of CCRL1 in CRS.

Relationship between health literacy and disease-specific quality of life in patients with sinonasal disease.

Patients with limited health literacy tend to have worse medical outcomes, often due to decreased medication compliance or reduced capacity to self-manage disease. Health literacy can be assessed using validated tools such as the Brief health literacy screening tool (BRIEF). This study theorizes that lower health literacy is associated with worse sinonasal disease quality of life (QOL). A cohort of 187 patients at our clinic were routinely screened for health literacy and rhinosinusitis disability index (RSDI) scores. Health literacy is categorized into "Limited," "Marginal," and "Adequate." The higher the RSDI, the worse the patient's QOL. Patients were stratified into "New" and "Established" groups. Their demographic data and sinonasal disease-specific QOL were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed to assess the relationship between health literacy and Sinonasal Disease-specific QOL. The cohort mean age was 50 years, and 56% were females. In "New" patients, "Limited" health literacy was associated with an increase in RSDI scores (p<0.0001). This study demonstrates that patients with limited health literacy have a worse sinonasal disease-specific QOL. Therefore, rhinologists must be aware of this discrepancy and tailor their care appropriately to help patients with limited health literacy. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

An Observational Study of Quality of Life in Patients of Allergic Rhinitis in a Tertiary Health Care Centre of South Gujarat.

Allergic rhinitis (AR) refers to an IgE-mediated inflammation following exposure to allergen. Often deemed as a minor inconvenience rather than a disease, AR impairs the QOL. Medical treatment has a beneficial effect. To evaluate the QOL in patients of AR. Patients of AR with ≥ 18 years age, receiving treatment in our department are included. Pre and Post treatment VAS (Visual Analogue Scale) and RSDI (Rhinosinusitis Disability Index) are compared to know the effect of disease and treatment on QOL. The patients of PAR (Persistent Allergic Rhinitis) had a greater impact on QOL. In PAR, a combination of INCS (Intranasal Corticosteroids) + oral antihistaminics result in significant reduction in VAS & RSDI scores. In IAR (Intermittent Allergic Rhinitis), Oral antihistaminics monotherapy was most effective in reducing itching while Oral antihistaminics + 1 week of intranasal decongestant was most effective in reducing sneezing, running nose and nasal blockage. Oral antihistaminics + LTRA (Leukotriene Receptor Antagonist) was most effective in reducing physical RSDI score. Oral antihistaminics + 1 week of intranasal decongestantwas most effective in reducing functional and emotional RSDI score. Functional RSDI scores had improved much higher than emotional and physical scores. All these observations were statistically significant. AR does affect the QOL while pharmacotherapy helps in improving the overall QOL. Oral antihistaminic alone or in combination with local decongestant/LTRA in IAR cases while INCS + oral antihistaminic in PAR cases are significantly effective in controlling symptom scores and QOL.

Effect of Zileuton Treatment on Sinonasal Quality of Life in Patients with Aspirin-Exacerbated Respiratory Disease.

Background Aspirin-exacerbated respiratory disease (AERD) is a subtype of chronic sinusitis comprised of asthma, chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, and a non-IgE hypersensitivity to cyclooxygenase-1 inhibitors. AERD is typically refractory to medical and often surgical management and causes significant quality-of-life concerns for patients. Objective This study aimed to retrospectively assess the rhinologic disease-specific outcomes as well as quality-of-life metrics in a cohort of AERD patients who medically manage their condition with zileuton, a 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor. Methods Retrospective review of 45 patients at a tertiary care center with diagnosis of AERD who underwent functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) with at least 6 months of pre- and postoperative clinical data were included in the study. Zileuton cohort chosen based on intention-to-treat after initial FESS. Background data collected included patient demographics, surgery information, and zileuton initiation dates. Zileuton and control cohorts were followed for 2.8 and 2.4 years, respectively. Outcomes measured were rhinosinusitis disability index (RSDI) scores, antibiotics use, corticosteroid use, otolaryngology visits, and time to revision surgery. Results RSDI scores, antibiotics use, corticosteroid use, otolaryngology visits, and time to revision surgery had no statistically significant difference between cohorts. However, those taking zileuton tended to undergo fewer revision surgeries during the study. Conclusion Zileuton therapy for AERD patients shows no statistical benefit for rhinologic quality-of-life symptoms but may be useful in diminishing frequency of surgical intervention. In addition, pulmonary symptoms may be improved by treatment but were not assessed. Future study is warranted.

Low-concentration hypochlorous acid nasal irrigation for chronic sinonasal symptoms: a prospective randomized placebo-controlled study.

Low-concentration hypochlorous acid (HOCl) is an endogenous antibacterial and antiviral agent. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of HOCl irrigation in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) refractory to medical therapy. Forty-three adult patients (mean age 45.5years) were enrolled in this study. They were randomly chosen to receive nasal irrigation with either low-concentration HOCl generated by a Salicid device (n=21), or a placebo (saline; n=22) for 8weeks. The outcome measures were scores on the 20-Item SinoNasal Outcome Test (SNOT-20), rhinosinusitis disability index (RSDI), nasal endoscopic score, and bacterial cultures. The SNOT-20 scores were significantly lower in the HOCl group than in the placebo group after 2weeks of treatment (p<0.05) and remained lower after 4weeks of treatment. With respect to the RSDI scores, there was a significant improvement in the HOCl group at 1week after treatment and in both groups at 2weeks after treatment (p<0.05). There were no significant differences in the endoscopic scores between the two groups after the treatment. The bacterial culture rates were lower in the HOCl group than in the placebo group after 4weeks of treatment, but this was not significant (p>0.05). Our results showed that low-concentration HOCl irrigation resulted in a greater improvement in CRS symptoms as compared to saline irrigation.

Effectiveness of steam inhalation and nasal irrigation for chronic or recurrent sinus symptoms in primary care: a pragmatic randomized controlled trial.

Systematic reviews support nasal saline irrigation for chronic or recurrent sinus symptoms, but trials have been small and few in primary care settings. Steam inhalation has also been proposed, but supporting evidence is lacking. We investigated whether brief pragmatic interventions to encourage use of nasal irrigation or steam inhalation would be effective in relieving sinus symptoms. We conducted a pragmatic randomized controlled trial involving adults (age 18-65 yr) from 72 primary care practices in the United Kingdom who had a history of chronic or recurrent sinusitis and reported a "moderate to severe" impact of sinus symptoms on their quality of life. Participants were recruited between Feb. 11, 2009, and June 30, 2014, and randomly assigned to 1 of 4 advice strategies: usual care, daily nasal saline irrigation supported by a demonstration video, daily steam inhalation, or combined treatment with both interventions. The primary outcome measure was the Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI). Patients were followed up at 3 and 6 months. We imputed missing data using multiple imputation methods. Of the 961 patients who consented, 871 returned baseline questionnaires (210 usual care, 219 nasal irrigation, 232 steam inhalation and 210 combined treatment). A total of 671 (77.0%) of the 871 participants reported RSDI scores at 3 months. Patients' RSDI scores improved more with nasal irrigation than without nasal irrigation by 3 months (crude change -7.42 v. -5.23; estimated adjusted mean difference between groups -2.51, 95% confidence interval -4.65 to -0.37). By 6 months, significantly more patients maintained a 10-point clinically important improvement in the RSDI score with nasal irrigation (44.1% v. 36.6%); fewer used over-the-counter medications (59.4% v. 68.0%) or intended to consult a doctor in future episodes. Steam inhalation reduced headache but had no significant effect on other outcomes. The proportion of participants who had adverse effects was the same in both intervention groups. Advice to use steam inhalation for chronic or recurrent sinus symptoms in primary care was not effective. A similar strategy to use nasal irrigation was less effective than prior evidence suggested, but it provided some symptomatic benefit. ISRCTN, no. 88204146.

The impact of diabetes mellitus on outcomes of endoscopic sinus surgery: a nested case‐control study

Given the immune impairment associated with diabetes mellitus (DM), its impact on chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a potentially relevant concern; however, it has not been well-studied. A single retrospective study reported worse postoperative quality of life outcomes in DM patients with CRS. Our study evaluated the effect of comorbid DM on outcomes of endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) using a prospective study design. Using a multicentered, prospective cohort of patients (n = 437) undergoing ESS for recalcitrant CRS, a nested case-control comparison was performed between 20 adult DM patients (cases) and 20 non-DM patients (controls), matched 1:1 for age and Lund-Mackay computed tomography (CT) scores. Outcome measures included 22-item Sinonasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22), Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), and Brief Smell Identification Test (BSIT). Mean follow-up was similar between cases (mean ± standard deviation: 12.6 ± 6.0 months) and controls (12.9 ± 5.9 months; p = 0.862). All preoperative scores were statistically equivalent between DM and non-DM cohorts. Both cohorts showed significant post-ESS improvement in SNOT-22 (p = 0.001) and RSDI scores (p < 0.001), and no significant change in PHQ-2 or BSIT scores. The magnitude of score changes was statistically equivalent between the 2 cohorts for all outcome measures with no differences in postoperative score changes between insulin-dependent DM patients and those managed by oral hypoglycemics or dietary restriction (p ≥ 0.444). DM patients with CRS experience similar degrees of symptomatic benefit from ESS compared to controls. Insulin dependence does not appear to adversely affect surgical outcome but a larger cohort would better assess the effect of DM type and control on surgical outcomes in CRS.

Long-Term Quality of Life Outcomes in Minimally Invasive Pituitary Surgery

Background and Methods: Endoscopic endonasal minimally invasive pituitary surgery (MIPS) has proven to be safe and efficacious. Although some data exist on short-term quality of life (QOL) improvement, virtually no data exist on long-term QOL outcomes after MIPS. Our hypothesis is that patients will report no long-term change in sinus disability after undergoing MIPS. In this study we retrospectively reviewed patients who underwent minimally invasive pituitary surgery (MIPS) from 2002–2009. Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI) scores and patient demographics were recorded. Patient responses were stratified as <1 month, <2 months, <6 months, <1 year, or >1 year after surgery. Pre- and postoperative mean RSDI scores and the mean absolute change in RSDI were calculated with 95% confidence intervals.

Sinonasal quality‐of‐life before and after endoscopic, endonasal, minimally invasive pituitary surgery

Endoscopic, endonasal, minimally invasive pituitary surgery (MIPS) has proven to be safe and efficacious. However, there are few data that assess the health-related or sinonasal-specific quality-of-life (QoL) of those undergoing MIPS. Our hypothesis is that patients undergoing MIPS do not have significantly different sinus disability or change in QoL after surgery compared to prior to surgery. This is a retrospective review of patients undergoing MIPS between 2002 and 2009. Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI) scores, patient demographics, tumor characteristics, surgical outcomes, and intraoperative/postoperative complications were recorded. Preoperative and postoperative mean RSDI scores and the mean absolute change in RSDI were calculated with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) compared RSDI scores between different tumor subgroups. A total of 50 patients completed the RSDI preoperatively and postoperatively. Analyses revealed no significant difference between preoperative and postoperative scores across all domains (p = 0.84). When the cohort was stratified into functional vs nonfunctional tumor types there was no significant difference between the 2 groups (p = 0.88). Data showed no statistically significant change in RSDI scores postoperatively in all groups. These data show that MIPS with appropriate postoperative care results in little or no long-term sinonasal quality of life defects.

The impact of allergic rhinitis on sexual activity, sleep, and fatigue

Allergic rhinitis (AR) has been found to impact the daily activities of allergic patients. This includes the effects on sleep and chronic fatigue. The effect of AR on sexual function has not been well studied. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of AR on sexual function, sleep, and fatigue. The Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI) is a quality of life (QOL), validated outcomes tool that assesses how AR affects QOL. Specific questions address the adverse consequence on sexual function, sleep, and fatigue. Four subsets of patient with AR who completed the RSDI were evaluated for the specific questions as well as the physical, emotional, functional, and total scores. The scores were compared with a cohort of normal subjects, patients with a diffuse group of rhinologic disorders, and patients scheduled for septal surgery (non-AR patients). Patients with AR had significantly higher (worse) sexual and sleep RSDI scores than the non-AR patients and normal subjects. Although the AR subjects also had significantly higher fatigue RSDI scores than the normal subjects, there was no significant difference between the AR and non-AR patients' fatigue scores. Non-AR patients had significantly higher sexual, sleep, and fatigue RSDI scores than the normal subjects. AR has a significant negative impact on sexual function and can result in sleep disturbances and fatigue as measured by the RSDI.

Evaluating change in health-related quality of life in adult rhinitis: Responsiveness of the Rhinosinusitis Disability Index

BackgroundThe Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI) is a validated measure of health-related quality of life (HRQL) in rhinitis. Responsiveness of the RSDI to changes in health status over time has not been described.MethodsWe studied adults with a self-reported physician diagnosis of rhinitis identified through a national telephone survey. HRQL was assessed at baseline and at 24 months using the RSDI. Symptom severity, physical health status (SF-12 PCS), psychological mood (CES-D), and perceived control of symptoms were also assessed at the time of each interview. In addition, we ascertained specific health outcomes attributed to rhinitis, including days of restricted activity, job effectiveness, number of physician visits, and medication costs.ResultsOf 109 subjects interviewed at baseline, 69 (63%) were re-interviewed 24 months later. RSDI scores improved by = 0.5 standardized response mean in 13 (19%) subjects and worsened in 17 (25%). Change in the RSDI over time correlated with changes in symptom severity (r = 0.38, p = 0.001), physical health (r = -0.39, p = 0.001), mood (r = 0.37, p = 0.002) and perceived control of symptoms (r = -0.37, p = 0.01). In multivariate analyses adjusted for baseline health status, improvement in RSDI was associated with less restricted activity (p = 0.01), increased job effectiveness (p = 0.03), and decreased medication costs (p = 0.05), but was not associated with change in the number of physician visits from baseline (p = 0.45).ConclusionThe RSDI is responsive to changes in health status and predicts rhinitis-specific health outcomes.

The Efficacy of Hypertonic Saline Nasal Irrigation for Chronic Sinonasal Symptoms

To assess quality of life (QOL) in patients with sinonasal symptoms in response to hypertonic saline nasal irrigation (HSNI), and to assess HSNI use patterns. The study was an uncontrolled 12-month follow-up to a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and used HSNI in a community setting. We included 54 participants with recurrent or chronic sinonasal symptoms. Forty participants had been in the intervention group of a previous study; 14 had been control participants. Primary outcome measures were the Rhinosinusitis Disability Index (RSDI), a sinus-symptom severity assessment (SIA), and the Sino-Nasal Outcomes Test (SNOT-20). Secondary outcome measures were frequency and pattern of HSNI use, side effects and satisfaction. Among participants using HSNI in the prior RCT, RSDI scores continued to improve, from 73.2 +/- 2.6 points to 80.6 +/- 2.4 points (P < 0.001). SIA and SNOT-20 scores remained stable. Former control participants reported QOL improvement similar to that of HSNI users in the prior RCT. RSDI scores improved from 62.0 +/- 3.9 points to 79.7 +/- 3.7 points (P < 0.05), SNOT-20 scores improved from 43.5 +/- 5.7 points to 28.4 +/- 4.8 points, and SIA scores improved from 4.2 +/- 0.3 points to 2.6 +/- 0.3 points (P < 0.01). Mean HSNI use for all participants was 2.4 irrigations per week; 33% of participants used HSNI regularly, 55% when symptomatic. Side effects were minor; satisfaction was high. Participants with chronic sinonasal symptoms reported improved QOL and frequent, satisfying use of HSNI. HSNI is an effective adjunctive treatment of chronic sinonasal symptoms.