Chapter 9 : Nasal polyps

Nasal polyps are an easily recognizable clinical entity. They result from the prolapsed lining of the ethmoid sinuses and block the nose to a variable degree depending on the size. On examination polyps appear as pale bags which arise most commonly from the middle meatus and are relatively insensitive when probed. This helps to differentiate polyps from mucosa of the middle turbinate which may be polypoid. The pale colour is a result of the poor blood supply but, in the presence of repeated trauma and inflammation, they may become reddened. They are usually bilateral and, when unilateral, transitional cell papilloma (Ringert's tumour, inverted papilloma) or malignancy need to be excluded. Antrochoanal polyps are similar in colour to ethmoidal ones, but are a different disease affecting the maxillary sinus, where the lining prolapses by way of the ostium into the nasal fossa and postnasal space.