Allergic rhinitis diagnosis and treatment: new guidelines for primary care professionals

Two complementary guidelines on the diagnosis and treatment of allergic rhinitis are published in the August issue of the Allergy journal. These guidelines are the result of a close cooperation between scientists, primary care professionals, and patients' organisations. GA?LEN, Global Allergy and Asthma European Network contributed to the guidelines representing European research in the field. Allergic rhinitis is one of the most common chronic diseases with over 600 million people affected worldwide. More than 200 million of them also suffer from concomitant asthma. However, allergic rhinitis is generally under-diagnosed and under-treated. Prof. Jean Bousquet, GA?LEN Vice-President and Chairman of ARIA, Allergic Rhinitis and Its Impact on Asthma, stresses that "neither allergic nor non-allergic rhinitis are trivial... [read full story]