Allergic Rhinitis

Abstract

Patients with allergic rhinitis have a chronically stuffy nose. Usually their sense of smell is dulled, and their nose discharges clear mucus. To differentiate other conditions from allergic rhinitis and to establish a diagnosis, the physician must take a careful history to ferret out possible precipitating factors and meticulously examine the nose, using phenylephrine hydrochloride or similar drugs to shrink mucous membranes.