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IRRITATIVE RHINITIS
You may have heard of the sick-building syndrome or you yourself may have been exposed to some chemical that irritates your nose out of proportion to that which one would expect. Some of the more concentrated cleaning agents are known to do this. Poorly cared for, closed building air systems cause nasal irritation. Fresh paint or new or old carpets may cause these same problems. Obnoxious air pollutants and a variety of organic chemicals have been alleged to cause irritative rhinitis. At this time, we in medicine, have difficulty objectively documenting the individual's susceptibility to these chemicals and so we are obliged to take the patient's word for the degree of irritation. While there are some individuals who simply do not like where they work and, therefore, once they get the idea that the air quality is inadequate, will never be able to work in that environment. There is no question that some of these people do suffer annoying irritations. The best treatment would be to correctly diagnose the offending chemical be it at home, in the air or at work, and then successfully avoid the irritant. This may not be possible or may not be practical.
Nasal steroids will reduce some of the nasal mucosal reaction to almost anything placed within the nose, so a course of nasal steroids prescribed by your physician is certainly worthwhile. Some individuals report some comfort from spraying nasal saline into the nose. Whether this is done with a little squeeze bottle, with a little bulb syringe, or with a small washing with nasal irrigation is a matter of personal choice, but it is always worth trying. If none of these simple measures are efficacious, you have a difficult problem. This will require a specialist, and even then it may be difficult or impossible to attain a cure.
Terence Davidson, M.D., F.A.C.S.
UCSD Otolaryngology Division
200 West Arbor Drive
San Diego, CA 92103-8895
(619) 543-6631 |