A population-based study on the association of peripheral vestibular disorder with allergic rhinitis

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is increasingly recognized for its broader impacts on health, including possible links to various vestibular disorders. This study aims to investigate the association between prior AR and peripheral vestibular disorder (PVD) within Taiwan's National Health Insurance system.

Utilizing the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2010, this case-control study analyzed data from patients diagnosed with PVD (n=78,503) and 235,509 propensity-score-matching controls. To evaluate the association between prior AR and PVD, we carried out multiple logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).

The Chi-squared test indicates a notable contrast in prior AR occurrence between individuals with PVD and those under control (32.2% vs. 22.8%, p<0.001). Furthermore, our findings reveal significant statistical differences in AR prevalence among patients with Meniere's disease (32.1% vs. 22.8%, p<0.001), benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (32.2% vs. 22.8%, p<0.001) as well as vestibular neuritis (32.6% vs.22.8, p <0.001) relative to controls. The adjusted OR for prior AR among sampled PVD patients was found to be 1.605 (95% CI=1.577~1.634). After making similar adjustments for MD, BPPV, and VN cases; we discovered that adjusted ORs of AR were respectively recorded as: 1.598 (95% CI=1.530~1.668), 1.597 (95% CI=1.534~1.662), and finally at 1.636 (95 % CI =1.552 ~1.725).

The study suggests a significant link between prior AR and the occurrences of PVD. However, given the distinct pathophysiological mechanisms of these disorders and the high prevalence of AR in the general population, the findings should be interpreted with caution. These results are hypothesis-generating and underscore the need for prospective and mechanistic studies to clarify whether the observed associations reflect causal relationships or coincidental comorbidity.