Evaluation of Post-Intervention Outcomes in Patients with Empty Nose Syndrome

Objectives: To conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of published articles to assess the impact of inferior turbinate/meatus augmentation in patients diagnosed with empty nose syndrome (ENS). Data Sources: PubMed, Cochrane database, Embase, Web of Science, SCOPUS, and Google Scholar. Review Methods: Six databases were searched to December 2022. We retrieved studies evaluating improvements in refractory ENS-related symptoms based on various patient-reported outcome measures after inferior turbinate/meatus augmentation. Results: As a result of meta-analysis, Sinonasal Outcome Test, Empty Nose Syndrome 6-Item Questionnaire (ENS6Q), and depression scores were measured at 1 week; 1, 3, and 6 months; and later than 12 months after intervention for patients with ENS. All scores revealed significant symptom improvement. By reference to the minimal clinically important difference of the ENS6Q (6.25), inferior turbinate/meatus augmentation relieved the nasal symptoms of ENS in the long term. Although the improvements in anxiety scores at 1 week (0.4133 [−0.3366; 1.1633], 0.00, I² = NA) and 1 month (0.4525 [−0.0529; 0.9579], I² = 0.0%) were not statistically significant, the scores differed significantly at 3 months (0.7351 [0.4143; 1.0559], I² = 28.4%), 6 months (0.8297 [0.6256; 1.0337], I² = 37.2%), and longer than 12 months (0.7969 [0.4768; 1.1170], I² = 0.0%). Conclusion: These data and analysis suggest that performing inferior turbinate/meatus augmentation on ENS patients may improve not only nasal symptom scores but also accompanying psychological problems such as anxiety and depression. Laryngoscope, 134:2005–2011, 2024.