Researchers conducted this study to identify the safety, efficacy, and durability of cryotherapy treatment in treating chronic rhinitis.
A systematic literature review was performed to identify studies that investigated the utility of cryotherapy in chronic rhinitis. Only studies with the primary objective of assessing the efficacy of cryotherapy on chronic rhinitis were included.
One hundred ten abstracts were identified, of which 15 were included in this review. Epistaxis and nasal obstruction were commonly reported complications. No serious adverse events were reported. For obstructive symptoms, “reduced” symptoms were reported in 63.4% to 100% of patients. Seven studies used only patient-reported improvements without stratifying results based on symptom type; general improvements ranged from 67% to 100%. Four studies reported improvement in allergic cohorts ranging from 63.4% to 80% of patients. Two studies noted improvement in patients with mixed pictures ranging from 92.5% to 100%.
The study concluded that although cryotherapy appears safe and productive, heterogeneous past investigations with low-quality evidence make robust, evidence-based recommendations challenging to make. Further study with validated metrics and controlled populations is undoubtedly warranted and should be encouraged.
Reference: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1945892418800879
