[Self-reported prevalence of allergic rhinitis in eleven cities in China].
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study is to investigate the self-reported prevalence and other epidemiological characteristics of allergic rhinitis from 11 cities throughout the mainland of China.


METHODS
Telephone interviews were conducted in the two main municipalities (Beijing, Shanghai) and eight capital cities (Changsha, Changchun, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Shenyang, Wuhan, Urumqi and Xi'an) of main provinces throughout the mainland of China after sampling target phone numbers by the approach of random digital dialing (RDD) via computer.


RESULTS
In total, the survey had sampled 684 blocks of telephone numbers in 11 cities, and dialed 119 319 telephone numbers. Of the 38 203 respondents, 4253 subjects reported allergic rhinitis, while the other 33 950 were screened negative in the telephone interviews. The self-reported prevalence of allergic rhinitis was lowest in Xi'an (8.0%), and highest in Urumqi (21.4%), with Nanjing having intermediate value (11.5%). The gender-adjusted prevalence ranged from 8.5% in Xi'an to 21.3% in Urumqi, while the age-adjusted prevalence of self-reported allergic rhinitis ranged from 8.7% in Beijing to 24.1% in Urumqi.


CONCLUSIONS
The study demonstrates that the self-reported prevalence of allergic rhinitis in 11 cities throughout the mainland of China has wide variations, and the strategy of prevention for allergic rhinitis should be conducted according to the epidemic features of it.
Han
De-Min
DM
Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Affiliated Beijing Tongren Hospital of Capital University of Medical Sciences, Beijing Institute of Otorhinolaryngology, Beijing100730, China.
Zhang
Luo
L
Huang
Dan
D
Wu
Yang-Feng
YF
Dong
Zhen
Z
Xu
Geng
G
Kong
Wei-Jia
WJ
Bao
Ji-Min
JM
Zhou
Bing
B
Wang
Shen-Qing
SQ
Wang
De-Hui
DH
Wang
Qiu-Ping
QP
D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006255:Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal / Q000453:epidemiology; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires