Histopathological examination of the effects of radiofrequency treatment on mucosa in patients with inferior nasal concha hypertrophy

Radiofrequency reduction has become one of the most popular methods in the treatment of inferior nasal concha hypertrophy. During surgical treatment of inferior nasal concha hypertrophy, it is important to cause minimal injury to the overlying ciliated epithelium, since if the ciliated structure of this epithelium is permanently disrupted, it is hard to carry out one of the important functions of lining of the nasal cavity, mucociliary clearance. In this study, the ultrastructure of inferior nasal concha epithelium was examined by transmission and scanning electron microscopy in 40 patients with inferior nasal concha hypertrophy. The biopsy specimens were taken before the radiofrequency treatment and 8 weeks after the radiofrequency treatment. Then, the effects of radiofrequency treatment on concha epithelium and morphology of ciliae were examined ultrastructurally. In the scanning and transmission electron microscopic examination of the tissue samples taken before radiofrequency treatment, no ultrastructural pathology was observed in the number and morphology of the ciliae and the inferior nasal concha epithelium. The biopsy specimens obtained 8 weeks after radiofrequency treatment also did not show any ultrastructural pathology in these parameters. However, in the transmission electron microscopic examination of the subepithelial tissue, fibrosis was observed in local areas in the biopsy specimens obtained 8 weeks after radiofrequency treatment. In conclusion, the results obtained from this study suggest that ciliated epithelium of the inferior nasal concha is not destroyed by radiofrequency reduction.