Most patients with asthma have rhinitis suggesting the concept of ‘one airway one disease’ or ‘united airways’. However, not all patients with rhinitis present with asthma.
The association between allergic rhinitis and asthma is well documented, but the temporal sequence of this association has not been closely examined.
According to a recent literature review, childhood allergic rhinitis was associated with a 2- to 7-fold increased risk of asthma in preadolescence, adolescence, or adult life.
Childhood allergic rhinitis was associated with a 3-fold increased risk of childhood asthma persisting compared with remitting by middle age. Asthma burden in later life might be reduced by more aggressive treatment of allergic rhinitis in early life.
Childhood allergic rhinitis predicts asthma incidence and persistence to middle age: A longitudinal study. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2007 Sep 6.
Links between allergic rhinitis and asthma still reinforced. P. Demoly, P. J. Bousquet (2008). Allergy 63 (3), 251–254.
Rhinitis is common in asthma and impairs asthma control. Allergy. 2011.
Poor asthma control? – then look up the nose. The importance of co-morbid rhinitis in patients with asthma http://goo.gl/0nNZg