More Severe Allergic Rhinitis Confers Higher Risk for Respiratory Comorbidities

Children with more severe forms of allergic rhinitis had a higher risk for current asthma and bronchial hyperreactivity compared with children with milder forms, according to study results published in the journal Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Research.

Researchers performed skin prick and Provocholine^® (Methapharm Inc; Ontario, Canada) provocation tests in children aged 7 years with allergic rhinitis who were enrolled in the Panel Study of Korean Children. The phenotype of allergic rhinitis was determined in accordance with the Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) classification. The associations between comorbidities and risk factors for allergic rhinitis phenotypes were then explored.

Of the 606 children with allergic rhinitis enrolled, 37.2% of cases were categorized as mild, while 8.8% of cases were moderate to severe. Mild persistent allergic rhinitis was associated with recent use of analgesics or antipyretics and current cat ownership. Sensitizations to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, Japanese hop, and cat were associated with moderate to severe persistent allergic rhinitis. Furthermore, children with asthma and bronchial hyperreactivity were more likely to have moderate to severe allergic rhinitis.

“We conclude from our findings that the moderate to severe-persistent [allergic rhinitis] phenotype is more closely related to respiratory comorbidities and allergen sensitization than the mild [allergic rhinitis] phenotype,” the researchers wrote. “In addition, a novel finding from our analysis is that the severity of [allergic rhinitis] is more closely related to current asthma and [bronchial hyperreactivity] than its persistence in young children.”

Reference

Jung S, Lee S-Y, Yoon J, et al. Risk factors and comorbidities associated with the allergic rhinitis phenotype in children according to the ARIA classification. Allergy Asthma Immunol Res. 2020;12(1):72-85.