rhinitis in the geriatric population鼻炎的老年人口.pdfVIP

Pinto and Jeswani Allergy, Asthma Clinical Immunology 2010, 6:10 /content/6/1/10 ALLERGY, ASTHMA CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY R E V I E W Open Access Review Rhinitis in the geriatric population Jayant M Pinto* and Seema Jeswani Abstract The current geriatric population in the United States acco unts for approximately 12% of the total population and is projected to reach nearly 20% (71.5 million people) by 2030[1]. With this expansion of the number of older adults, physicians will face the common complaint of rhinitis with increasing frequency. Nasal symptoms pose a significant burden on the health of older people and require attention to improve quality of life. Several mechanisms likely underlie the pathogenesis of rhinitis in these patients, including inflammatory conditions and the influence of aging on nasal physiology, with the potential for interaction between the two. Various treatments have been proposed to manage this condition; however, more work is needed to enhance our understanding of the pathophysiology of the various forms of geriatric rhinitis and to develop more effective therapies for this important patient population. Classifications Nonallergic rhinitis is characterized by non-IgE-medi- Rhinitis is defined as inflammation of the nasal mucosa ated symptoms typical of rhinitis, such as congestion and and is characterized by symptoms of congestion, rhinor- clear rhinorrhea, with less prominence of sneezing and rhea, itching of the nose, postnasal drip, and sneezing[2]. ocular/nasal pruritis[6,7]. The associated symp