Comparison of Health-related Quality of Life in Patients With Allergic Rhinitis and Controls

 Allergic rhinitis is an inflammatory disease of the nasal mucosa that can affect the quality of life of patients. 

 The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) in patients with allergic rhinitis and healthy people.

In this cross-sectional study, participants were 100 patients with persistent allergic rhinitis (Mean±SD age = 30.1±7.6 years) and 100 healthy individuals (Mean±SD age = 29.7±6.0 years) referred to Amir Al-Momenin Hospital in Rasht, Iran. After obtaining an informed consent from them, a demographic form and the 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) were completed for them. T-test was used to compare the scores between the two groups. All statistical analyzes were performed in SPSS V. 19 software.

 The Mean±SD of the HRQOL score in patients (66.66±13.77) was lower than in controls (72.88±12.40). This difference was statistically significant (P<0.001). Results showed a significant relationship of low HRQOL with male gender and higher level of education (P<0.001).

 HRQOL in patients with allergic rhinitis is significantly poor. Further studies on the effect of this disease in different age groups and the role of pharmaceutical and non-pharmacological treatment methods in improving their HRQOL are recommended.