Infantile Rhinitis
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Date
2019
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Abstract
Rhinitis is nasal inflammation associated with symptoms of nasal discharge, obstruction, and itching, as well as sneezing; the term AR (AR) is used when these pathogenetic and clinical symptoms are attributed to sensitization to an allergen. When these clinical findings are observed in children younger than 2 years of age, the condition is classified as “infantile rhinitis.” Rhinitis in infants has a long list of differential diagnoses including infections and congenital anatomic lesions as well as multisystem diseases such as cystic fibrosis; however, we now know that AR can be defined in this age group, too, enlarging the list of differential diagnoses. It has been reported that AR symptoms have been observed at ages as early as 6 months. The prevalence of AR, which is one of the most common chronic diseases both in adults and children, varies widely, from 10 to 40%, and this prevalence seems to be increasing in most countries in the world. However, AR was not considered to be a major problem in infants. This concept has changed over the years, and we now know that allergy may also be a cause of rhinitis in infants. There are many risk factors associated with infantile rhinitis; many others are known for the development of allergy. It has been demonstrated that living in houses with high mold exposure and not having an older sibling are associated with frequent infectious rhinitis in infants. Moreover, exposure to environmental tobacco smoke is a risk factor for the development of allergic and non-allergic rhinitis. In this chapter, infantile rhinitis is discussed in all aspects. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.