Article Sidebar
Published:
Mar 24, 2020Keywords:
Acute rhinitis; nasal congestion; topical nasal decongestants.
Article Details
Issue
Section
Review
By submitting manuscripts to SAFP, authors of original articles are assigning copyright to the SA Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care. Copyright of review articles are assigned to the Publisher, Medpharm Publications (Pty) Ltd, unless otherwise specified. Authors may use their own work after publication without written permission, provided they acknowledge the original source. Individuals and academic institutions may freely copy and distribute articles published in SAFP for educational and research purposes without obtaining permission.
Main Article Content
Treating acute rhinitis and exacerbations of chronic rhinitis – A role for topical decongestants?
Robin J. Green
Charles Feldman
Andre van Niekerk
Marinda McDonald
Raymond Friedman
Guy A. Richards
Abstract
Acute nasal symptoms are troublesome for patients. In addition, these symptoms are encountered frequently by individuals because of common infectious diseases, especially rhinovirus, giving rise to a ‘common cold’. Acute nasal symptoms include rhinorrhoea, sneezing, nasal itch and congestion. Of these, nasal congestion is the most irritating. Because topical nasal decongestants provide rapid and dramatic relief from these symptoms, especially nasal congestion, they are frequently used and abused by patients. Guidance for indications, choice of most efficacious decongestant and recommendations for limiting side effects are thus essential to be imparted to patients by doctors.
