A common language to assess allergic rhinitis control: results from a survey conducted during EAACI 2013 Congress.
BACKGROUND
The concept of control is gaining importance in the field of allergic rhinitis (AR), with a visual analogue scale (VAS) score being a validated, easy and attractive tool to evaluate AR symptom control. The doctors' perception of a VAS score as a good tool for evaluating AR symptom control is unknown, as is the level of AR control perceived by physicians who treat patients.


METHODS
307 voluntarily selected physicians attending the annual (2013) European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) meeting completed a digital survey. Delegates were asked to (1) estimate how many AR patients/week they saw during the season, (2) estimate the proportion of patients they considered to have well-, partly- and un-controlled AR, (3) communicate how they gauged this control and (4) assess how useful they would find a VAS as a method of gauging control. 257 questionnaires were filled out completely and analysed.


RESULTS
EAACI delegates reported seeing 46.8 [standard deviation (SD) 68.5] AR patients/week during the season. They estimated that 38.7 % (SD 24.0), 34.2 % (SD 20.2) and 20.0 % (SD 16.34) of their AR patients had well-controlled (no AR symptoms), partly-controlled (some AR symptoms), or un-controlled-(moderate/severe AR symptoms) disease despite taking medication [remainder unknown (7.1 %)]. However, AR control was assessed in many ways, including symptom severity (74 %), frequency of day- and night-time symptoms (67 %), activity impairment (57 %), respiratory function monitoring (nasal and/or lung function; 40 %) and incidence of AR exacerbations (50 %). 91 % of delegates felt a simple VAS would be a useful tool to gauge AR symptom control.


CONCLUSIONS
A substantial portion of patients with AR are perceived as having uncontrolled or partly controlled disease even when treated. A simple VAS score is considered a useful tool to monitor AR control.
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium ; Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Academic Medical Center (AMC), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Peter W
PW
Hellings
Department of Women and Child Health, Food Allergy Referral Centre, Padua University Hospital, Veneto Region, Padua, Italy.
Antonella
A
Muraro
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Academic Medical Center (AMC), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Wytske
W
Fokkens
Hospital Clinic, IDIBAPS, CIBERES, Barcelona, Catalonia Spain.
Joaquim
J
Mullol
Upper Airways Research Laboratory (URL), University Hospital Ghent, Ghent, Belgium.
Claus
C
Bachert
Allergy and Respiratory Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, IRCCS S Martino, IST, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy.
G Walter
GW
Canonica
Centre of Academic Primary Care, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
David
D
Price
Allergy Department, 2nd Pediatric Clinic, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Nikos
N
Papadopoulos
RNTNE Hospital, London, UK.
Glenis
G
Scadding
Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria.
Gerd
G
Rasp
Division of Allergy, Department of Pulmonology, Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve, University Hospital of Montpellier, Montpellier, France.
Pascal
P
Demoly
MedScript Ltd, Dundalk, Co. Louth, Ireland.
Ruth
R
Murray
University Hospital, Montpellier, France ; MACVIA-LR, Contre les Maladies Chronique pour un Vieillissement Actif en Languedoc Roussilon, European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Aging Reference Site, Montpellier, France ; INSERM, VIMA: Ageing and Chronic Diseases. Epidemiological and Public Health Approaches, U1168 Paris, France ; UVSQ UMR-S1168, Universite Versailles St-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Versailles, France.
Jean
J
Bousquet
Allergic rhinitis; Control; Digital; Survey; VAS; Visual analogue scale