Refractory Chronic Rhinosinusitis: Etiology & Management

The true incidenceof RCRS is unknown. It is estimated that at least 10 % of patients with CRS continue to be symptomatic after appropriate endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) with long term follow up. This 10% failure rate translates into 30,000 patients yearlyundergoing ESS with poor postoperative outcome.Because these numbers are cumulative over years, approximately450,000 cases in the United States are currently estimatedto have chronic sinusitis that is unresponsive to medical and surgical therapy. Today, these chronic patients form a significant portion of most rhinology practices. (Desrosiers, 2004).