[Rates of otolaryngic pathology among children with sensitization to aeroallergens in different regions]

The epidemiology of ENT-pathology in patients with allergic rhinitis in Russian Federation varies as the country has a vast territory with significant regional differences. Evaluation of the most frequent otolaryngic pathologies in different regional groups of atopic children is important as otorhinolaryngologist could be the first to reveal the susceptibility of children to aeroallergens.

89 children, median age 6.76±3.7 of three different regions of residence (the Siberian Region, the South Region and the Central Moscow Region) were included in the study. All ENT-specialists of the research had otolaryngic allergy training. All patients had otolaryngic examination and nasal endoscopy. The atopic status was confirmed either by means of blood sIgE >0.35 kU/l or by skin prick testing. The sensitizations to 6 group of aeroallergens such as tree pollen, grass pollen, weed pollen, molds, house dust mite and epidermal allergens were analyzed and compared among regional ENT-groups. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics v.23.0.

Among all regions ENT-visits in Siberia were statistically significant in case of grass pollen sensitization (χ² Pearson=5.159, p=0.023). In the South Region sensitization to house dust mite (χ² Pearson=5.463, p=0.019) and to tree pollen (χ² Pearson=6.016, p=0.014) were statistically significant for ENT-visits. ENT-visits in the Central Moscow Region were significant in case of house dust mite sensitization (χ² Pearson=7.875, p=0.005). The children with such ENT-pathology as otitis media were more often sensitized to weed pollen (χ² Pearson=3.949, p=0.047). Throat pathology i.e. tonsillar hypertrophy according to the ENT examination was more often in patients with tree pollen sensitization (χ² Pearson=6.075, p=0.014).

ENT-pathology in patients with pediatric allergic rhinitis could be different and needs further investigation.