Clinical Patterns of Allergic Rhinitis Among Paediatric Patients Attending A Tertiary Hospital in Dodoma, Tanzania

Abstract

Background: Allergic rhinitis is a chronic and recurrent nasal condition, but it has often been given little attention in children with late presentations. Globally allergic rhinitis affects more than 400 million people with prevalence rates being between 10% and 30% among adults and 40% among children. In Tanzania, the overall prevalence of allergic rhinitis is 10.3%, and commonly affected groups are children and adolescents. This study aimed to determine the clinical patterns of allergic rhinitis among paediatric patients attending Benjamin Mkapa Hospital in Dodoma region as there are scare studies on allergic rhinitis in Tanzania especially in central Tanzania.
Methods: A hospital based prospective cross-sectional study at Benjamin Mkapa Hospital recruited 348 children with a clinical diagnosis of allergic rhinitis using convenience sampling technique. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25. A P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
Results: In this study, 86.2% children had a seasonal type of allergy and according to ARIA classification, 50% children had mild-intermittent allergic rhinitis followed by 34.5% children, with moderate to severe allergic rhinitis. The commonest form of allergy was an inhalant, 97.5%. The commonest triggers of allergic rhinitis were dust exposure, 90.8% and smoke, 74.4% and the commonest symptoms were recurrent sneezing, 87.1%, runny nose, 66.4%, blocked nose, 58% and nasal itching, 52.3%. Recurrent tonsillitis, 26.1%, sinusitis, 21.8% and allergic conjunctivitis, 20.7% were the common comorbidities reported.
Conclusion: In this study, seasonal allergic rhinitis predominated and mild-intermittent allergic rhinitis was common as per ARIA classification of allergic rhinitis. The commonest allergen was an inhalant and both dust exposure and smoke were the commonest triggers. The predominant symptoms were recurrent sneezing, runny nose and blocked nose but recurrent tonsillitis, sinusitis and allergic conjunctivitis were the commonest comorbidities. These findings lay emphasis on the importance of early identification of environmental triggers and implementation of appropriate preventive and therapeutic measures, including allergen avoidance and optimized pharmacological management. Future studies should further explore specific allergen sensitization patterns, long-term outcomes, and the effectiveness of targeted interventions to improve the management of allergic rhinitis and its possible associated comorbidities.