Abstract
Background: Hookah is a tobacco product of Middle Eastern origin;
however, its popularity increases in Europe and the US. Despite its
frequent use, hookah’s potentially detrimental effects are
underestimated due to the scarcity of the relevant research. Since
septoplasty is one of the most commonly performed procedures of
otolaryngology practice, we aimed to investigate the impact of hookah
consumption on recovery after septoplasty. Methods: Patients who
underwent septoplasty in Sanliurfa Training and Research Hospital
Department of Otolaryngology between January 2017 and December 2019 were
divided into four groups based on their history of hookah and cigarette
smoking. The patients’ prospectively collected data, including
demographic features, healing time, and presence or absence of septal
perforation during follow-up, were compared between these four groups.
Results: The entire cohort included 270 patients. The mean patient age
was 29.2±5.8 years. One hundred and thirty-two (48.9%) patients were
non-smokers, 96 (35.5%) were cigarette smokers, 27 (10%) were hookah
smokers, and 15 (5.6%) consumed both tobacco products regularly. Mean
healing time was 10 days, and septal perforation was encountered in 10
patients (3.7%). A comparison of the groups revealed that cigarette
smoking did not impact septal perforation rates (p=0.326) but prolonged
the healing time. However, hookah smoking with or without cigarette
smoking significantly influenced septal perforation rates and healing
times. Conclusion: Patients should be questioned about hookah smoking in
addition to cigarette smoking before the septoplasty procedure. Patients
with a positive history of hookah smoking should be followed closely in
terms of delayed healing and increased septal perforation rates.