Assessment of mucosal changes associated with nasal splint in a rabbit model

INTRODUCTION: There is no consensus on duration of the nasal splint after nasal septum surgeries. The pressure of nasal splint on the mucosa may cause tissue necrosis and nasal septum perforation.OBJECTIVES: To investigate the histopathological changes of the nasal mucosa caused by nasal splints in a rabbit model.METHODS: No splint was used in group A. Bilateral silicone nasal splints were placed for five, ten, and 15 days in groups B, C, and D, respectively. Biopsy of the nasal mucosa was performed after removal of splint. Histopathologic evaluations were performed. The severity and depth of the inflammation were scored.RESULTS: Group A had a normal histological appearance. Comparison of the results of groups B, C, and D with group A demonstrated statistically significant differences with regards to the severity of histopathological findings. There was no statistically significant difference between groups B and C. There were statistically significant differences between the groups B and D, and also between groups C and D.CONCLUSIONS: Longer duration of nasal splint had a higher risk for septal perforation. Therefore, removal of the splint as soon as possible may be helpful for preventing potential perforations.引言：目前关于鼻中隔术后鼻夹板的留置时长尚无统一共识。鼻夹板对黏膜施加的压力可能引发组织坏死及鼻中隔穿孔。研究目的：本研究旨在以兔为实验模型，探究鼻夹板所致鼻黏膜的组织病理学变化。实验方法：A组未置入鼻夹板；B、C、D组分别置入双侧硅胶鼻夹板，留置时长依次为5天、10天、15天。移除夹板后，对鼻黏膜进行活检并开展组织病理学评估，同时对炎症的严重程度与浸润深度进行评分。实验结果：A组组织学外观正常。将B、C、D组的实验结果与A组对比，在组织病理学异常表现的严重程度方面存在统计学显著性差异。B组与C组之间无统计学显著性差异，而B组与D组、C组与D组之间均存在统计学显著性差异。研究结论：鼻夹板留置时长越长，鼻中隔穿孔的风险越高。因此，尽早移除鼻夹板或有助于预防潜在的鼻中隔穿孔。