Too Much Nasal Sprays for Relieving Allergy May Cause “Drug-Induced Rhinitis”

Translator :Kuan-Wen Chen

BBC, December 6, 2011

The nasal allergy symptoms is annoying, many people will go to the pharmacy to buy nasal sprays for ease physician. The doctor reminds, although the ease effect is quickly at beginning, the long-term use – especially for more than ten days, may lead to dependency and resulting “drug-induced rhinitis”. The serious symptoms will evolve into irreversible consequences. In this result, it will need surgery to resolve the allergy condition.

The 30-year-old Ms. Chung has been tormented years by the nonstop nasal flow since she was child. Moreover, the nasal congestion caused the regular sleep insufficiency. Her allergic nasal rhinitis was diagnosed until the university. So she bought the nasal vasoconstrictor on her own to relieve the symptom. However, she used the sprays continually for three years with more and more dependency. Ms. Chung’s husband described her as if on an addiction-like states. But her symptom is still not eradicated.

The nasal vasoconstrictor is effective for nasal congestion, but the long-term use may lead to dependency and cause drug-induced rhinitis. “Nasal sprays are effective at beginning, it can relieve symptoms immediately. But the efficacy will get worse after the long time use. For example, the sprays may ease physician by using once a day. After the daily use, the internal will be shorter. You may need to use the sprays frequently – more than four or five times with less or even no effect in one day. Long term nasal congestion may evolve to the drug-induced rhinitis which can only resolved by the surgery.” Prof. Fang, Sheen-Yie said, the convenor of Taiwan Rhinology Society, Department of otolaryngology in National Chung Kung University Hospital.

The doctor said “The correct medication treatments should be given based on the severity of nasal allergy symptoms” Taking medicines without control may cause the irreversible damage to nasal. In addition, parents are easy to mix up the nasal allergy as the cold and then treat with cold medicine to their children. Without the property medicines, the long-term nasal congestion will lead to mouth breathing. It is easily influence the development of children face. The growth problem such as face longer, malocclusion may occur together with the nasal allergy symptoms.

Please refer to :http://tw.news.yahoo.com/鼻噴劑緩解過敏-太依賴當心-藥物性鼻炎-042618634.html