Non‐allergic rhinitis: Position paper of the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology

Abstract This EAACI position paper aims at providing a state‐of‐the‐art overview on nonallergic rhinitis ( NAR ). A significant number of patients suffering from persistent rhinitis are defined as nonallergic noninfectious rhinitis ( NANIR ) patients, often denominated in short as having NAR . NAR is defined as a symptomatic inflammation of the nasal mucosa with the presence of a minimum of two nasal symptoms such as nasal obstruction, rhinorrhea, sneezing, and/or itchy nose, without clinical evidence of endonasal infection and without systemic signs of sensitization to inhalant allergens. Symptoms of NAR may have a wide range of severity and be either continuously present and/or induced by exposure to unspecific triggers, also called nasal hyperresponsiveness ( NHR ). NHR represents a clinical feature of both AR and NAR patients. NAR involves different subgroups: drug‐induced rhinitis, (nonallergic) occupational rhinitis, hormonal rhinitis (including pregnancy rhinitis), gustatory rhinitis, senile rhinitis, and idiopathic rhinitis ( IR ). NAR should be distinguished from those rhinitis patients with an allergic reaction confined to the nasal mucosa, also called “entopy” or local allergic rhinitis ( LAR ). We here provide an overview of the current consensus on phenotypes of NAR , recommendations for diagnosis, a treatment algorithm, and defining the unmet needs in this neglected area of research.