Powered Inferior Turbinoplasty
Powered inferior turbinoplasty with Medtronic’s Inferior Turbinate Blade can offer better long-term results for patients who need inferior turbinate reduction.1-4
About Powered Inferior Turbinoplasty
Inferior Turbinate Blade Creating a Submucosal Pocket, Not a Subperiosteal Pocket
Large, swollen inferior turbinates are frequently a cause of nasal obstruction, contributing to sinusitis and obstructive sleep apnea in adults and children. If the hypertrophy is caused by an allergy or environmental irritant, medical treatment of the underlying cause may reduce turbinate swelling and solve the problem. Long-term chronic swelling, however, can become irreversible and unresponsive to medical therapy. If so, inferior turbinate reduction, such as powered inferior turbinoplasty, may be necessary.
A primary goal of inferior turbinate surgery is volumetric reduction of the sub-mucosal vascular stromal tissue while preserving the ciliated epithelium as an important part of respiratory filtering.
Anatomy and Blood Flow of Inferior Turbinate
Medtronic’s unique Inferior Turbinate Blades feature a patented, elevated tip that helps enable more precise tissue removal and preservation of mucosa. Clinical studies indicate that powered inferior turbinoplasty with our Inferior Turbinate Blade and Straightshot® M4 Microdebrider can offer more effective long-term results for your patients.1-4
View a surgical video of powered inferior turbinoplasty (2:35, 9.8 MB) using our innovative Inferior Turbinate Blade.
More Effective Long-Term Results with Powered Inferior Turbinoplasty
In a recent study published in the Laryngoscope, patients treated with the powered inferior turbinoplasty procedure using Medtronic’s microdebrider and Inferior Turbinate Blade experienced significantly better long-term outcomes than those who received treatment with a Coblation® radiofrequency device.1 This was the first three-year study directly comparing long-term efficacy of the two inferior turbinoplasty techniques.
The study found that, compared with preoperative findings, subjective and objective measurements in the microdebrider group had improved significantly at all postoperative assessment times. In the Coblation group, significant improvements were observed at 6 months and 1 year, but not at 2 and 3 years.1
Detail – Clinical Comparison: Inferior Turbinate Blade vs. Radiofrequency1
Additionally, Atef et al2 studied 102 patients with chronic hypertrophic rhinitis, hypertrophied inferior turbinates, and nasal obstruction who underwent Coblation treatment. The results showed that 91% of patients didn’t have complete relief of their nasal obstruction after one Coblation session, and 63% of patients failed to achieve relief after a second Coblation treatment was performed.2
Other studies also show more effective long-term results with powered inferior turbinoplasty compared to radiofrequency turbinoplasty.3-4
Additional Products
Dissolvable Nasal Packing
To absorb drainage, control minimal bleeding, and prevent the middle turbinate from lateralizing following functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS), Medtronic offers innovative dissolvable nasal packing. It eliminates the need for packing removal, which can be extremely painful for your patients. Our dissolvable nasal packing products use hyaluronic acid to help keep the surgical site moist, reduce adhesions, and decrease healing time after sinus surgery.5
References
- Liu C-M, Tan C-D, Lee F-P, Lin K-N, Huang H-M. Microdebrider-assisted versus radiofrequency-assisted inferior turbinoplasty. Laryngoscope 2009;119:414-8.
- Atef A, Mosleh M, El Bosraty H, El Fatah GA, Fathi A. Bipolar radiofrequency volumetric tissue reduction of inferior turbinate: Does the number of treatment sessions influence the final outcome? Am J Rhinol 2006; 20: 25-31.
- Berger G, Ophir D, Pitaro K, Landsberg R. Histopathological changes after Coblation® inferior turbinate reduction. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2008;134(8):819-823.
- Lee JY, Lee JD. Comparative study on the long-term effectiveness between Coblation- and microdebrider-assisted partial turbinoplasty. Laryngoscope 2006;116:729-34.
- Berlucchi M, Castelnuovo P, Vincenzi A, Morra B, Pasquini E. Endoscopic outcomes of resorbable nasal packing after functional endoscopic sinus surgery: a multicenter prospective randomized controlled study. Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2009;266(6):839-45.
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