Amphotericin B irrigation for the treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyps: a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study

Abstract

Background: Fungus-driven inflammation is proposed to play an important role in the pathogenesis of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). Previous studies tested the efficacy of intranasal antifungal agents for patients with nasal polyps. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of intranasal amphotericin B (AMB) in patients who have CRS without nasal polyps (CRSsNP).

Methods: Patients diagnosed with CRSsNP were enrolled in this study. They were assigned randomly to receive irrigation with AMB solution (20 mg of AMB in 500 mL of normal saline) or placebo (yellowish dye in 500 mL of normal saline) for 4 weeks. The outcome measures included the Chinese version of the Rhinosinusitis Outcome Measure 31 (CRSOM-31), nasal endoscopy, and bacterial and fungal cultures.

Results: Seventy patients were enrolled and 64 patients completed this study. There was significant improvement in the AMB group (n = 32) both in endoscopic (p = 0.013) and CRSOM-31 scores (p < 0.0001). The placebo group (n = 32) showed significant improvement in CRSOM-31 scores (p < 0.0001). CRSOM-31 scores were significantly lower in the AMB group than in the placebo group after 2-week treatment (p = 0.018) and remained lower after 4-week treatment, although the difference was not significant (p = 0.091). There were no significant differences in endoscopic scores and bacterial or fungal culture rates between two groups after treatment.

Conclusion: Our results showed that AMB irrigation improved symptoms and endoscopic scores but did not show superiority to saline irrigation alone in patients who have CRSsNP.