The Long Term (20 Years) Effects of Closed Nostrils to the Lung Parenchyma: A Case Report

The earliest known nose reconstruction was described in samhita which is an old indian publication, about 600 bc. later an italian surgeon called gaspare tagliacozzi described the delayed arm flap for nasal reconstruction in 1597. a 65 year old female patient admitted to our hospital with the complaint of obstructed nostrils. 20 years ago she has lost the nose (inferior portion) and got the defect reconstructed with tagliacozzi flap. her nostrils were patent at the time of surgery but soon they were obstructed. during the past 20 years both of the her nostrils were closed completely when the patient did admit to our department. during all those years the patient has breathed through her mouth. we have performed ct scan which demonstrated bilateral emphysema of the lungs. we have concluded that the emphysematous changes in the lung parenchyma are due to the chronic long lasting obstruction of the nostrils.