Assessment of uvula dimension in patients with chronic nasal obstruction

Assessment of Uvula Dimension in Patients with Chronic Nasal Obstruction Purpose: In this study, we aimed to determine the relationship between chronical nasal obstruction and uvula size and to investigate whether the change of uvula dimensions leads to complications such as snoring, OSAS, etc. Materials and Methods: The patient group was enrolled among the patients admitted to Atatürk University Medical Faculty Ear, Nose and Throat Policlinic between March 2017 and May 2017 with complaints of nasal obstruction and difficulty in breathing comfortably. The control group consisted of healthy and voluntary individuals. The study consisted of a total of 110 subjects, including 70 patient group and 40 control group. All individuals' stories were questioned and detailed ENT examinations were conducted. Body mass indexes are calculated. The tongue root, larynx, and oropharyngeal examinations were normal in both groups. Both groups consisted of individuals with no OSAS diagnosis, no chronic disease, no history of otolaryngologic surgery and 18-55 years of age with normal body mass index. An anterior rhinomanometry test was performed and uvula dimensions were measured. Results: İn the patient group mean uvula size was bigger than control group and this difference was statistically significant. There was no correlation between total nasal resistance value and uvula size in the patient group. Conclusion: It has been shown that chronic nasal obstruction causes an increase in the size of the uvula, and that this may be the beginning of a vicious circle starting with simple snoring and going towards OSAS. Therefore, when the diagnosis and treatment of chronic nasal obstruction is planned, it is necessary to evaluate the uvula dimension. Keywords: Chronic nasal obstruction, OSAS, Uvula.