Rhinosporidiosis- A retrospection

Rhinosporidiosis is a chronic granulomatous disease caused by Rhinosporidium seeberi. It is endemic in the coastal region of India where agriculture is the most common occupation. It grows in stagnant water and transepithelial spread is the common mode of infection especially in the nose and nasopharynx. Patients present with reddish granular, polypoidal mass in the nose. Surgical excision with cauterization of the base is the treatment of choice. Recurrence is common even after meticulous clearance of the disease. This is a retrospective study done in a tertiary care hospital in Mangalore, India. The case records of histopathologically confirmed cases of rhinosporidiosis, during 10 years period between January 2007 and December 2016, were studied. Demographic profile, symptoms, site of involvement, treatment done, follow up and recurrence during follow up were noted and analysed. Out of the 34 patients, 31 (91.17%) were males and 3 (8.82%) were females. All were agriculturists. Commonest age group is 3rd and 6th decade. Bathing in pond water was the common source of infection. Nasal obstruction was the most common symptom. The most frequent site of occurrence is nasal cavity, with inferior turbinate being preferred site. Out of the 34 cases, 22 (64.70%) were recurrent cases with past history of surgery. Out of the 34 patients treated in our centre, no recurrence was seen in newly diagnosed cases during the study period, whereas 2 of the recurrent cases came with recurrence.