Epidemiology of Nasal Polyps

Abstract

The prevalence of nasal polyps (NP) in the population has been grossly estimated as 1-4%. An association between NP and allergic rhinitis (AR) is weak, with NP prevalence in patients with AR estimated between 1.5 and 1.7% and this incidence approaches that of the general population. Large cohort studies have revealed a strong association between asthma and NP. The incidence of NP increases with age and is likely the greatest between 40 and 60 years of age. If NP are found in a child, a workup for cystic fibrosis should be conducted. Genetic inheritance has been proposed as a possible etiology of NP but remains unclear. Up to 50% of aspirin insensitive patients have NP and up to 36% of patients with NP may have some form of analgesic insensitivity. Allergic fungal rhinosinusitis is a known underlying pathophysiologic etiology in a subset of CRS patients and is strongly associated with NP. Ethnic and geographic variation has emerged as a potential modifier in NP pathophysiology. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.