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Read articleAllergic rhinitis is inflammation of the nasal lining triggered by dust, pollen, smoke or animal dander, and it frequently leads on to sinus infection. The dry, dusty air of Rayalaseema and the wind-blown soil of the summer months make it a year-round complaint here.
Symptoms
Not everyone gets every symptom, and the pattern can differ in older people, in people with diabetes and in children. These are the ones most often reported.
- Repeated sneezing, particularly in the morning
- Watery nasal discharge and nasal blockage
- Itching of the nose, eyes, throat and ears
- Loss or reduction of smell
- Facial pain or heaviness over the cheeks and forehead in sinusitis
- Thick yellow or green discharge and post-nasal drip
- Headache, disturbed sleep and mouth breathing
When to see a doctor
Do not wait these out
If any of the following applies, arrange to be seen the same day. For anything sudden or severe, call 9281862028 or come straight to the emergency department at SIMS — it is open 24 hours and does not need an appointment.
- Symptoms lasting more than ten days, or worsening after initial improvement
- Facial swelling, eye swelling, double vision or severe headache — attend the emergency department
- High fever with severe facial pain
- Persistent one-sided nasal blockage or blood-stained discharge
- Symptoms disturbing sleep, school or work despite treatment
Tests that may be advised
Your consultant will order only the investigations that change the plan. Most of the following are available on the SIMS campus, so results usually come back the same visit.
- Nasal endoscopy
- Allergy testing where the trigger is unclear and avoidance is possible
- CT scan of the paranasal sinuses for chronic or recurrent disease
- Complete blood count with eosinophil count
- Assessment for asthma, which frequently coexists
How it is treated
Treatment is decided case by case — by how advanced the problem is, what else you are being treated for, and what you can realistically sustain. Broadly, it involves the following.
- Identifying and reducing triggers — house dust, incense and mosquito coil smoke, kitchen smoke, pets
- Saline nasal irrigation, which is simple, cheap and effective
- Intranasal steroid spray used regularly, with correct technique
- Antihistamines and decongestants for defined short periods
- Antibiotics only for confirmed bacterial sinusitis
- Functional endoscopic sinus surgery or septoplasty for structural obstruction and chronic disease
This page is general information, not a diagnosis
Allergic Rhinitis and Sinusitis can look like several other conditions, and the reverse is equally true. Nothing here can replace an examination, your test results and the judgement of the doctor treating you — and no medicine mentioned by name to a friend or relative should be started on the strength of this page. If you recognise yourself in it, book a consultation with the ENT department. If a symptom is sudden or severe, call 9281862028.
