Pharmacotherapy to prevent the complications of allergic rhinitis.

Allergic rhinitis is an immunologic disease with effects that extend beyond the symptoms that occur subsequent to allergen exposure. A reduced quality of life and medical conditions such as asthma, sinusitis and otitis media are well recognized complications of allergic rhinitis. Craniofacial abnormalities, nasal ployps, and respiratory infections have been linked to allergic rhinitis, but the evidence is conflicting. This article reviews the complications of allergic rhinitis, their prevalences, possible mechanisms for their relationship to allergic rhinitis, and the prevention of these complications via pharmacologic treatment of allergic rhinitis.