1994 Volume 1994 Issue Supplement69 Pages 33-41
There has been an increase in the number of fungal infections of the nasal and paranasal cavity in recent years. We reviewed 13 cases of fungal infection of the paranasal sinuses that were treated at our hospital between 1986 and 1992. The 13 patients (4 males and 9 females) ranged in age from 32 to 76 years old. The most common chief complaint was nasal obstruction followed by rhinorrhea, cheek pain and nasal post drip. A diagnosis of paranasal aspergillosis was made in all cases by pathological examination of mucosa taken during surgery or biopsy specimens of the nasal cavity. However, there was no mycosis on cultures of rhinorrhea, necrotic debris or mucosa of paranasal sinus. In 11 cases, surgical procedures were performed and in 5, surgery was accompainied by oral administration of an antifungal drug. Only antral irrigation was carried out in 2 cases. In all cases, aspergillosis was cured and a good prognosis was ensured. We considered systemic, local and host-parasite relations as etiological factors in these cases.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and CT were performed in two cases with paranasal fungal infection and one case with unilateral maxillary sinusitis. The MRI findings appeared to be more characteristic of fungal sinusitis than the CT findings, especially on T2 weighted images.
