The added value of narrow band imaging in Sinonasal tumour resection and surveillance: Our experience

Background & purpose

Narrow Band Imaging (NBI), developed by Olympus Medical Systems, has played a role in diagnosing digestive tract lesions and cancers, diagnosing and characterizing bladder cancers during cystoscopy and in the diagnosis and management of Head and Neck cancers. We aim to explore the potential use of NBI in the diagnosis, management, and follow-up of sinonasal tumours.

Methods

We present a series of cases treated at our institution, where NBI played a crucial role in the diagnosis, surgical management, intraoperative decision-making, and follow-up. The cases include a patient with sinonasal lymphoma, 2 patients with sinonosal malignant melanoma and a patient with olfactory neuroblastoma.

Results

In our experience, NBI proved beneficial not only in detecting otherwise unseen nasal lesions but also in targeted biopsies and intraoperative planning, on some occasions altering the course of treatment. NBI may also be a simple, inexpensive surveillance method for detecting sinonasal tumours recurrence after excision.

Conclusion

While there are limitations to its use, there is potential for NBI to be of significant use in rhinology practice, reducing morbidity and tumour recurrence rates and streamlining the diagnostic and surveillance process.