Normative Values of Rhinology Questionnaires in Young Adults: A Tool to Identify Candidates for Rhinoplasty.

[OBJECTIVE] Normative values of Rhinoplasty Outcome Evaluation (ROE) and Functional Rhinoplasty Outcome Inventory 17 (FROI-17) allow the monitoring of surgery outcomes. The objective of our study was to determine the reference norms of these disease-specific questionnaires in the age group that most often seeks rhinoplasty.

[METHODS] The normative values of the ROE and FROI-17 questionnaires were calculated for 570 (459 women and 111 men) young adults at the mean age of 19.3 ± 1.3 years, range 18-25 years. Each participant underwent an ENT examination. All those who obtained a positive result were asked to complete two questionnaires: ROE and FROI-17.

[RESULTS] The mean total ROE score was 13.4 ± 2.3, with a median of 13 and a range from 7 to 24. The mean overall FROI-17 score was 9.1 ± 13.3, with a median of 4 and a range from 4 to 72. For nasal symptoms, the mean was 4.0 ± 6.0, with a median of 1 and a range from 0 to 29. We observed a statistically significant difference between men and women only for the normative values of nasal symptoms (mean 4.0 ± 5.9 and median 2 (0-27) vs. mean 3.7 ± 6.5 and median 0 (0-29)). Additionally, there was a statistically significant correlation between the normative values of the ROE and FROI-17 scores (ρs = -0.413 for all participants, ρs = -0.314 for women, and ρs = -0.437 for men).

[CONCLUSIONS] The established normative values for the ROE and FROI-17 questionnaires among young, healthy individuals without nasal abnormalities can assist in the initial assessment of individuals seeking rhinoplasty. Deviations from these normative values in the ROE and FROI-17 questionnaires results may serve as indicators of potential concerns, such as body dysmorphic disorder (BDD).