Keywords: Allergic rhinitis; polysensitization; symptom pattern; disease duration; skin prick test

Aim:

The number of aeroallergen sensitizations is often considered a marker of cumulative atopic burden. However, its clinical relevance—particularly in relation to symptom patterns and disease duration in allergic rhinitis—has not been fully clarified. This study aimed to explore whether the number of aeroallergen sensitizations is associated with symptom patterns and disease duration in adult patients with allergic rhinitis.

Method:

A total of 198 adult patients diagnosed with allergic rhinitis and evaluated with skin prick testing were included in this cross-sectional study. The number of sensitizations was defined as the total number of positive aeroallergens for each patient. Based on clinical history, symptom patterns were categorized as seasonal, perennial, or mixed (perennial symptoms with seasonal exacerbations). Disease duration was grouped into predefined time intervals. Statistical analyses were performed using non-parametric tests.

Results:

There was a significant association between the number of sensitizations and symptom patterns (p = 0.0028). Patients with perennial symptoms had the lowest median number of sensitizations (median 1), followed by those with seasonal symptoms (median 2), whereas the highest counts were observed in patients with mixed symptom patterns (median 4). This relationship remained robust when only sensitized individuals were analyzed (p < 0.001). In contrast, no clear or consistent association was identified between sensitization number and disease duration (p = 0.444), although subgroup analyses suggested a weak and non-linear trend (Figure).

Conclusions:

Our findings indicate that the number of aeroallergen sensitizations is more closely related to the complexity of symptom patterns rather than the duration of the disease. In particular, patients with mixed symptom profiles tend to exhibit higher levels of sensitization. These results support the idea that quantitative assessment of sensitization may better reflect clinical phenotype rather than disease chronicity.