Abstract

Background: The septum is the cartilage in the nose that separates the nostrils. Typically, it locates at the center and divides the nostrils evenly. However, in some people, this is not the case. Many people have an uneven septum, which makes one nostril larger than the other. Severe unevenness is known as a deviated nasal septum (DNS). The current study aimed to assess the prevalence of nasal septum deviation and to detect which types of DNS are more prevalent.
Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted including all patients attending different clinics at King Fahad Military Hospital in Khamis Mushait, from September 2019 to January 2020. Data extracted included patient’s demographic data and presence, type, and side of DNS.
Results: The study included 408 attendants whose age ranged from less than 1 year up to 100 years with mean age of 32.1 ± 20.6 years old. Exact 154 (37.7%) attendants had DNS. It was diagnosed on the right side among 95 (61.7%) participants and on the left side among 59 (38.3%) participants. Regarding the shape of DNS, 78 (50.6%) participants had anterior DNS, followed by C-shape (29.9%; 46), S-shape (8.4%; 13), spiral (8.4%; 13), and thickened (2.6%; 4).
Conclusions: Nearly one-third of the attendants had DNS. Anterior type was the most frequent, especially among middle-aged attendants.

Key words: Nasal septum deviation, deviated septum, classification, types