Effect of Nasal Allergy Over Spirometric Parameters: A Prospective Study.

Abstract

Nasal allergy is characterized by an IgE mediated inflammatory response of nasal mucosa to allergens and it has a close association with Asthma. Nasal allergy has been demonstrated to be a strong risk factor for the onset of asthma in adults. Spirometric parameters like Forced expiratory volume at timed interval of 1s (FEV1) and forced expiratory flow (FEF25-75%) are impaired in patients with nasal allergy or allergic rhinitis. The FEF25-75% has been evidenced to be a reliable marker of early bronchial impairment in nasal allergy. Nasal allergy may be considered as the first step of the progression of respiratory allergy towards asthma. It has been demonstrated that FEF25-75% is useful in predicting the presence of airway hyper responsiveness.It may be a more sensitive indicator of chronic airway obstruction than FEV1 and is considered as a risk factor for the persistence of respiratory symptoms in asthmatic patients. The impact of allergic rhinitis or nasal allergy on asthma (ARIA) guidelines, clearly underlined the role of allergic rhinitis as risk factor for asthma development. The possible presence of spirometric abnormalities in patient with allergic rhinitis has been well documented. So keeping this in mind, present study is undertaken to evaluate the impairment of spirometric parameters, like FEV1, FEF25-75%, and forced vital capacity, in patients with nasal allergy and to predict the presence of airway hyper responsiveness.