Does air pollutant exposure impact disease severity or outcomes in chronic rhinosinusitis?

Background: Poor air quality increases the risk of developing chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and other airway diseases. However, there are limited data on air pollutants and CRS-specific disease severity. We assessed the impact of air pollutants on sinonasal-specific and general quality-of-life (QOL) measures in a multi-institutional cohort of patients with CRS.

Methods: Participants with CRS were prospectively enrolled in a cross-sectional study and self-selected continued appropriate medical therapy or endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS). The 22-item SinoNasal Outcome Test (SNOT-22) and Medical Outcomes Study Questionnaire Short-Form 6-D (SF-6D) health utility value scores were recorded. Patient exposure to air pollutants was determined using residence zip codes. Unadjusted group differences were compared, and correlation coefficients were evaluated to identify the magnitude of bivariate association.

Results: A total of 486 patients were enrolled and followed for a mean of 6.9 (standard deviation [SD] ± 2.3) months. Pollutant exposure did not significantly correlate with baseline SNOT-22 or SF-6D scores. Revision ESS was associated with higher median fine particulate matter (PM2.5; Δ = 0.12, [95% confidence interval {CI}: 0.003, 0.234]; p = 0.006) compared with primary surgery. PM2.5, PM10, and nitrogen dioxide concentrations (μg/m³) did not correlate with change in total SNOT-22 or SF-6D scores after treatment. Nevertheless, sulfur dioxide (SNOT-22: ρ = -0.121 [95% CI: -0.210, -0.030]; p = 0.007; SF-6D: ρ = 0.095 [95% CI: 0.002, 0.186]; p = 0.04) and carbon monoxide (SNOT-22: ρ = -0.141 [95% CI: -0.230, 0.050]; p = 0.002) exposure did correlate with these outcome measures.

Conclusion: Air pollutants may contribute, at least in part, to disease severity in CRS; future investigation is needed to further elucidate the nature of this relationship.