title: Links between bronchial asthma and allergic rhinitis in the Oita Prefecture, Japan.
abstract: Recent studies have strengthened the concept that bronchial asthma and allergic rhinitis are manifestations of an inflammatory process within a continuous airway. This study was performed to compare clinical findings in asthma with or without rhinitis in Japan. Nasal symptoms were present in 99.6% of asthma patients. The prevalence of allergic rhinitis in patients with asthma was 52.4%. Bronchial asthma attacks in one third of patients with rhinitis were coincident with worsening of nasal symptoms. In adults (> 16 years of age), rhinitis frequently preceded asthma, whereas asthma preceded rhinitis in children (< 16 years of age). The frequency of rhinitis in asthma decreases with increasing age. This study demonstrated a clear link between upper and lower airway disorders in Japan.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Brain and Nerve, Oita University Faculty of Medicine, Oita, Japan. matsuno@med.oita-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Osamu
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Matsuno
authors.forename: Eishi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Miyazaki
authors.forename: Ryuichi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Takenaka
authors.forename: Masaru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ando
authors.forename: Takeo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Toshiyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sawabe
authors.forename: Takehiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shigenaga
authors.forename: Kazunobu
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Katsunori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sugisaki
authors.forename: Toshihide
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kumamoto
mesh_terms: D001249:Asthma / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires