"SNOT RACE": Dhulikhel Hospital Protocol for Analysis of Computed Tomography of Nose, Paranasal Sinuses.

The anatomy of nose and paranasal sinuses is highly complicated and is most often characterised by considerable anatomical variations. These variations have often been linked to the aetiopathogenesis of inflammatory sinonasal pathology. Also apart from diagnostic value, these variations also predispose the surrounding critical structures to iatrogenic trauma during functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS). Some of these variations also have a role in recurrence of disease. Computed tomography (CT) is the mainstay of diagnosis and surgical planning for sinonasal diseases, and a structured checklist to assess possible anatomic variants helps to reduce the risk of surgical complications. Hence, we developed a checklist at our centre with the mnemonic "SNOT RACE".