Radiofrequency in Removal of Juvenile Nasal Angiofibromas

Objectives: Establish if radiofrequency has a role to play in removal of angiofibromas

Methods: Eight cases of juvenile nasal angiofibroma were operated using an endoscopic approach and removing the lesions with low frequency radiofrequency (coblation). Patients were young males between twelve and twenty years.

Parameters measured included size of tumor, age, blood loss, hospital stay and length of disease free follow up.

Results: All tumors were grade one or two. Average age was fifteen years. Average operating time was one hour fifty minutes. Average blood loss was three hundred millelitres. No patient required transfusion. Average hospital stay was 2.9 days.Average disease free follow up was two years.

Conclusion: Radiofrequency can play a role in endoscopic removal of juvenile nasal angiofibroma and in selected cases this can be done safely without prior embolisation . This technique is not suggested as a replacement for previous methods, but as an additional modality to help treat these difficult tumors.