Acoustic evaluation of the efficacy of medical therapy for allergic nasal obstruction.

Acoustic rhinometry (AR) was used for objective measurements of nasal cavity dimensions in conjunction with a 100-mm horizontal visual analogue scale (VAS) for simultaneous subjective assessments of nasal sensations of airflow. Studies were conducted on 45 patients with perennial allergic rhinitis before, during and after a 2-week period of treatment with oral emedastine difumarate, azelastine hydrochloride, and xiao qing long tang (a homeopathic decongestant), as well as intranasal fluticasone propionate aqueous nasal spray. During the treatment period, there was a significant increase in the right and left minimum cross-sectional areas (MCA) of the nose and/or nasal cavity volumes (NCV) in all groups. The average increase in MCA ranged from 21-39% after 1 week of treatment and 16-39% after 2 weeks, whereas that in the NCV ranged from 16-24% and 19-24%, respectively. Post-treatment measurements were not significantly different from the corresponding pre-treatment ones. These findings were in close agreement with that obtained with VAS, demonstrating that AR can be used to validate the application of VAS in the evaluation of nasal airflow during medical therapy.