Epidemiologicalinvestigationofallergicrhinitisin Inner Mongolia

Background In recent years,the research on allergic rhinitis(AR)in China has been increasing,but few researches have been done on AR in Inner Mongolia.Objective To investigate the prevalence of AR in three central cities(Chifeng,Hohhot and Ordos)in the East,middle and west of Inner Mongolia,and analyze the clinical symptoms and possible allergic causes,it provides basis information for future prevention,treatment,reduction of incidence rate of AR in this district and policy formulation.Methods Probability Proportionate to Size Sampling was used in this study.The order of City respondents is followed by:City-District-Street-neighborhood-committee-household,and the rural respondets is followed by:City-Township-Village-household respondents,carry out random step-by-step sampling.A total of 6393 subjects were selected,all of whom were permanent residents without mental disorders,ages range from six to sixty-five.The questionnaire was provided by Beijing Tongren Hospital.The questionnaire was designed according to International Study of Asthma and Allergies of Childhood(ISAAC)and European Community Respiratory Diseases Survey(ECRHS).The investigation is divided into three stages:questionnaire investigation stage,screening suspicious AR patients according to the results of the questionnaire,special examination for suspected patients and allergen skin prick test to confirm the diagnosis.The diagnosis was based on the guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of allergic rhinitis(Tianjin,2015),and the all the survey results were statistically analyzed.Results 6818 questionnaires returned,6393 valid questionnaires.The prevalence of AR was 27.72%(1772 cases)and 17.10%(1093 cases)respectively.The prevalence of AR in female(19.19%)was higher than male(15.34%)(?~2=16.594,P<0.001),The prevalence rate of female was significantly higher than that of male in 36-45,46-55 age group.The prevalence of AR decreased with age(?~2=282.366,P<0.001).The prevalence of AR in Hans(16.20%)was lower than that in minorities(23.13%)(?~2=24.516,P<0.001).The prevalence of AR in urban residents(27.27%)was higher than that in rural areas(9.71%),the difference is statistically significant(?~2=336.024,P<0.001);The peak of clinical symptoms in AR patients was from July to September.Artemisia annua(80.15%)had the highest positive rate of skin prick test,followed by Chenopodium,Humulus,ragweed,birch,willow,elm,poplar,dust mite,house dust mite,cat hair,juniper,dog hair,Alternaria and Cladosporium.The common underlying allergic diseases with AR were allergic conjunctivitis(73.99%),asthma(21.36%)and atopic dermatitis(20.53%).Logistic regression analysis showed that asthma history(OR=6.629),food allergy(OR=3.236),drug allergy(OR=1.786),antibiotic application(OR=1.553),home decoration(OR=2.307)and smoking history(OR=1.322)were the potential risk factors of allergic rhinitis.Conclusion The incidence rate of rhinitis in Inner Mongolia area is 17.10%.This research can provide a preliminary understanding of the current situation of allergic rhinitis epidemic in Inner Mongolia area,and provide epidemiological data for the prevention and treatment of allergic rhinitis in this area.