2.1 | Patients and specimens
Patients admitted at the First
Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, China, during the
same period (from 1/1 2019 to 1/12 2020) were enrolled in the study.
Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects. The
investigation was approved by the Ethics Committee for Human Study at
the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. We
collected specimens from patients in the CRSwNP, CRSsNP, and control
groups (n=15 each). Patients were selected based on the Guidelines for
Diagnosis and Treatment of CRS formulated by Europe
(EPOS2012).30 The inclusion criteria were as follows:
age, 18–60 years; systemic or local glucocorticoids,
immunosuppressants, or nasal sprays had not been used by the subject
within one month before the study. Patients with the following
diseases/conditions were excluded: posterior nostril polyps; cystic
fibrosis; fungal sinusitis; varus papilloma and other tumours; ciliary
immobility syndrome; lower airway diseases, such as asthma, chronic
bronchitis, and emphysema; infectious diseases, such as hepatitis and
tuberculosis; acute infectious diseases; and severe systemic diseases.