ABSTRACT

While allergic symptoms may at rst appear to be a minor nuisance affecting athletes, medical providers should not underestimate their prevalence and impact. Allergic rhinitis alone affects approximately 58 million people in the United States annually.30 Worldwide, allergic rhinitis affects 400  million people.13 It is the fth most common chronic disease and the most prevalent in patients under 18 years of age. Compared to patients without allergic rhinitis, the average number of annual prescriptions for patient with allergic rhinitis is almost double (10 prescriptions vs. 19 prescriptions).29 The cost to treat allergic

rhinitis almost doubled from 6.1 billion dollars in 2000 to 11.2 billion dollars in 2005.11 Other allergic conditions can beset athletes as well. Overall, 12%–22% of the general population will suffer from at least one subtype of urticaria at some time in their lives, with a prevalence of 0.11%–0.6%.27 The incidence of anaphylaxis is 50-2000 episodes per 100,000 person-years, with a possible lifetime prevalence of 0.05%–2%4 with a mortality rate of 1%.18,37 More important to the individual athlete is that these conditions can affect not only their physical capacity but also their psychological motivation to train and compete. Allergic rhinitis, in particular, may also be a harbinger of other atopic conditions such as eczema and asthma (Table 59.1).