Rhinitis

Rhinitis – General Information

Rhinitis is a medical condition which refers to the inflammation of some of the internal areas of the nose. This medical condition appears due to an acute or chronic inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose, inflammation which is caused by viruses, bacteria and irritants. Rhinitis seems to affect more than just the nose, eyes and throat, is seems to affect also the sleep causing sleeping problems, also ear problems and even in some cases learning problems. It seems that Rhinitis is caused by an increase in the levels of histamine (histamine is a biogenic amine which has an important role in the local immune responses and it is also involved in the regulation of the physiological function in the gut and acts as a neurotransmitter). Airborne allergens are the cause of the rising of the histamine levels, as these allergens can affect a person’s nose, eyes, throat and lead to an increase production of fluid in some of these areas.

There exist two types of this medical condition an allergic one (which is the inflammation of the nasal passages and can be seasonal, which occurs more often in the pollen seasons and perennial which can appear throughout the year) and a non-allergic one (which can be classified in viral and infectious, vasomotor, atrophic and drug linked). The most common causes which lead to the apparition and development of this medical condition are the food reactions, animal interaction, anatomic defects, ciliary dyskinesia, immunodeficiency diseases or emotional, hormonal and occupational causes.

Rhinitis – Symptoms

It is well known the fact that any medical disorder (including Rhinitis) can trigger a variety of symptoms. Therefore, some of this medical condition's most uncommon symptoms have not been listed (mentioned) here. This is why we strongly recommend you to contact your personal health care provider whenever you develop any unusual, bothersome or unpleasant symptoms. Your personal physician will be able to tell you if you are suffering from this disease or from any other medical disorder. Here is a list of the most common symptoms that a person who suffers from Rhinitis, may experience, although each individual experiences them differently.

The primary symptom of this medical condition is the runny nose. The inflammation of the nasal mucosa generates an excessive quantity of mucus which leads to the runny nose, nasal congestion and a post-nasal drip. Other symptoms include sneezing, itchy nose, throat, ears and eyes. The allergic one is characterized by repetitive sneezing, rhinorrhea and generalized fatigue. The symptoms of this medical condition may also include wheezing, eye tearing, and sore throat and even impaired smell, and can influence the persons to believe that they are suffering from asthma. The ear plugging and sinus headaches are also common in this case. The symptoms of the non-allergic Rhinitis are the followings: stuffy nose, runny nose and mucus (also known as phlegm) in the throat (this is also known as postnasal drip). If a person experiences any of the symptoms listed above it is recommended to see a doctor as soon as possible, in order to establish a correct diagnostic and to prescribe an appropriate treatment.

Rhinitis – Treatment

In the case of the non-allergic Rhinitis the treatment depends on how much this medical condition bothers a patient. In the cases of the mild forms the patients may need no treatment and they should just avoid the things which trigger the appearance of the symptoms and rinsing their nasal lavage with one of the over-the-counter saline solutions can help to free their nose. In the cases the patients experience more bothersome symptoms, then the doctor may recommend them oral decongestants (which include drug which contain pseudoephedrine such as Sudafed, Actifed) and which also contain phenylphrine, as these drugs help to narrow the blood vessels and reduce the congestion of the nose), saline nasal sprays which help to flush the nose of the irritants, soothe the nose’s membrane and thins the mucus, anti-drip anticholinergic nasal sprays (it is recommend usually a drug called ipratropium which is also recommended in the patients who are suffering from asthma and helps the runny and drippy nose), antihistamine nasal sprays (which can reduce the symptoms of this medical condition) and corticosteroid nasal sprays (which help in the prevention and treatment of the inflammation). In very rare cases the surgery may be an option to help treating the complications which can appear such as a deviated nasal septum or persistent nasal polyps.

Like in any other medical condition the primary goal in the treatment of Allergic Rhinitis is to reduce the allergy’s symptoms which appear due to the inflammation of the tissue that is affected. Like in any other type of allergy, the treatment of the allergic type of Rhinitis is to avoid the cause, the source of the allergy as much as possible. Besides the same treatment options as the other type of Rhinitis, in this cases there is another way to relief the symptoms but not to treat them and this is the immunotherapy (also known as allergy shots). The immunotherapy helps the immune system to become less sensitive to the substance which leads to the medical condition. Before starting this treatment, the doctor will try to identify what factors trigger this allergy and for this they make some blood test which will confirm the allergens.

The immunotherapy is recommended in the patients who are unresponsive to the medical treatment, who develop side effects of the administered drugs, who would rather not use a long-term drug-based treatment, who are unwilling to use the medication and to those who have recurrent otitis, which is the infection of the ears, and sinusitis. As we said before the immunotherapy does not treat the allergy it only helps to relief the symptoms. After five to seven seasons of adequate symptom relief the patients are recommended to stop this therapy.