Introduction: Functional Endoscopic Endonasal Surgery (FESS) is a rhinosurgical method utilizing the knowledge of the pathophysiology of sinuses and mucociliary transport. As with any surgical procedure, there is a risk of complications, defined here primarily by the narrow anatomical relationship of the cavities to the surrounding structures.
Aims: The aim of the study was to evaluate the risk of perioperative complications at the ENT department of the Hospital České Budějovice, a.s., their frequency depending on the surgical diagnosis and to compare the number of complications with the numbers from other institutions. Methods: A retrospective analysis of data on patients who underwent functional endoscopic endonasal surgery in our department between 2000 and 2017 was performed.
Operational diagnosis, complications and their severity were monitored. Results: FESS was performed in 1633 patients at our department in 2000 - 2017.
There were 25 perioperative complications in total, of which 18 were small (1.1%) and 7 were large (0.43%). 394 patients were operated for chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyposis and complications in this group occurred in 1.52% of cases. In patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (1138 patients), complications occurred in 1.67% of cases.
There was no significant difference in performance risk for these two groups. No perioperative complications occurred in 101 patients with maxillary sinus cyst.
The most frequently reported complication was lamina papyracea injury in 0.98%, followed by liquorrhea in 0.37%, bleeding leading to premature discontinuation in 0.12% and retrobulbar hematoma in 0.06% of cases. Conclusion: FESS is a method with low risk of complications.
By comparison with the number of complications from other insitutions, our ENT department does not deviate.