The nasal response to axillary pressure in non-eosinophilic intrinsic rhinitis

The exact pathophysiology of intrinsic rhinitis is not fully understood. The generally held belief is that it is due to an imbalance between the outflow of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems to the nose, perhaps due to excessive parasympathetic or reduced sympathetic activity. In this study the nasal airway response to a predominantly sympathetic stimulus, axillary pressure was studied in 19 patients with intrinsic rhinitis and compared with 16 normal patients. Axillary pressure was applied using a crutch. Following sustained pressure, a significant fall in nasal resistance in the normal group (0.823 kPas/l) and an insignificant fall in the patients with rhinitis (0.0725 kPas/l) was found. Pulse and blood pressure changes were similar in both groups with a significant rise in pulse rate and diastolic blood pressure. The study shows that there is an abnormal response to axillary pressure in intrinsic rhinitis, perhaps due to relative nasal sympathetic hyposensitivity.