MONDAY, Feb. 20 (HealthDay News) -- Exercise-induced rhinitis is common in athletes regardless of nasal allergies, and can be triggered by both indoor and outdoor exercise, according to a study in the February issue of Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.
William S. Silvers, M.D., of the Allergy, Asthma & Immunology Clinic of Colorado in Englewood, and colleagues distributed a questionnaire to adult patients who were receiving allergy immunotherapy in a community allergy practice, and to members of a community athletic club. The researchers evaluated nasal symptoms such as runny nose, nasal congestion and postnasal drip during indoor and outdoor exercise.
The investigators found that 66 of 164 patients (40 percent) said their indoor exercise-induced rhinitis adversely affected their athletic performance, including 53.1 percent of patients with nasal allergies and 27.7 percent of patients without allergies. More than half (56.1 percent) of patients reported outdoor exercise-induced rhinitis, including 71.6 percent of nasal allergy patients and 41 percent of nasal allergy-free patients.
"Exercise-induced rhinitis, predominantly rhinorrhea, commonly occurs in athletes regardless of underlying nasal allergy," the authors write. "A history specific to indoor and outdoor exercise triggers needs to be part of the complete rhinitis history so that specific treatment can be directed."
Abstract
