The effect of breath holding, hyperventilation, and exercise on nasal resistance.

A group of 51 patients was studied by a technique of active posterior rhinomanometry that assessed the influence of breath holding, hyperventilation, and exercise on nasal resistance. Breath hodling of 30 seconds or longer produced a decrease in nasal resistance in most of the subjects tested. Hyperventilation had variable effects on nasal resistance, and exercise consistently decreased nasal resistance. These observations are consistent with the proposed effect of chemoreceptor stimulation on nasal airway resistance.