Prevalence of Allergic Rhinitis among Adult Bronchial Asthmatic Patients of North Karnataka, India

Abstract

Background: Asthma and allergic rhinitis (AR) are diverse manifestations of allergic diseases of the airway. An individual may have either or both diseases. It is not known if the co‑occurrence of these two diseases can take control of asthma difficult in our population. Objectives: The objective was to determine the prevalence of AR in patients with bronchial asthma and to understand its effect on control of asthma among adults. Methodology: This was a cross‑sectional study done at a medical college in North Karnataka. Eighty confirmed patients of bronchial asthma attending the outpatient department of the respiratory department were enrolled as cases in the study, and another 80 patients without bronchial asthma were enrolled as controls. A structured questionnaire of the score for AR and asthma control test was used in this study. AR was clinically diagnosed by the presence of either watery rhinorrhea, nasal blockage, or excessive bout of sneezing, itching of eye, ear, nose, or throat. Results: Among the asthmatics, 74% had accompanying AR, while only 21% of controls had AR. About 64% of cases with AR had uncontrolled asthma, whereas 27% of cases without AR had uncontrolled asthma. Conclusion: The prevalence of AR among adult patients with bronchial asthma is high, and the co‑occurrence of AR is associated with poor asthma contro