ABSTRACT
Rhinitis is a common disease affecting millions of people worldwide. In England, epidemiologic studies from the 1980s have shown the prevalence to be approximately 25% in adults (1). In the United States, a recent study assessing the socioeconomic impact of rhinitis estimated that in 1987, 39 million individuals in the United States had allergic rhinitis with approximately 12 million being pediatric patients. Furthermore, the research indicated that in 1994 dollars the direct and indirect costs would be approximately $1.25 billion to care for this 1987 cohort.
