Rhinology is the study of the nose

Human nose

The visible part of the human nose is the protruding part of the face that bears the nostrils. The shape of the nose is determined by the ethmoid bone and the nasal septum, which consists mostly of cartilage and which separates the nostrils...

, including the sinuses

Paranasal sinus

Paranasal sinuses are a group of four paired air-filled spaces that surround the nasal cavity , above and between the eyes , and behind the ethmoids...

.
Rhinology concerns itself with medical and surgical diseases of the nasal passages as well as paranasal sinuses. It is becoming more important after the introduction of nasal endoscopes.

A rhinologist is a specialist otolaryngologist who specifically treats the nose.

Rhinology World 2009 (link title) has been the world's largest meeting of rhinologists (physicians and surgeons who take care of the nose, sinus and adjacent structures). This meeting will take place in Philadelphia, PA between April 15-19th 2009. Four societies (International Rhinologic Society (IRS), International Symposium on Infection and Allergy of the Nose (ISIAN), American Rhinological Society (ARS) and the American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy (AAOA)) will combine in a coordinated fashion to present not only the cutting edge of basic and clinical sciences in Rhinology, but also instruction courses, demonstration, dissertation, and opportunity for hands on surgical training.

History

Rhinology was practised as early as about the year 4000 B.C., for we find an inscription on the tomb of Seklet-n-ankl, an old Egyptian physician, that "he healed the King's nostrils."