The Prevalence of Allergic Rhinitis in Southwestern Iran and Its Association with Chronic Rhinosinusitis: A GA^2LEN Study

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is a prevalent disease affecting the quality of life of patients throughout the world. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of AR and its association with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) in the adult population living in Bushehr, southwestern part of Iran. In this population-based study, a total of 5420 individuals aged 15-65 years were selected through a multi-stage, cluster, random sampling method from which 5201 of them completed the Global Allergy and Asthma Network of Excellence (GA^2LEN) questionnaire (Response rate=96.1%). The prevalence of AR, based on Allergic Rhinitis and Its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) classification (mild or moderate; intermittent or persistent) was calculated and the association of AR and CRS was evaluated using a multiple logistic regression model. The overall prevalence of AR was 28.8%, and for the intermittent and persistent AR were 25.9% (out of which 81.34% were moderate to severe) and 74.1% respectively. Moreover, the prevalence of AR was significantly higher in health workers and smokers (p=0.002 and p 0.001, respectively). Furthermore, an association was found between AR and CRS (p 0.001, aOR: 4.68, 95%CI: 4.07-5.39), and also, between the persistent AR and CRS as compared with the intermittent (p 0.001, aOR: 4.21, 95%CI: 3.40-5.22). The present study showed that the prevalence of AR in Bushehr (Southwestern part of Iran) was significantly high. In addition, the results indicated a strong association between AR and CRS, especially in individuals with moderate to severe persistent AR.