Daytime Sleepiness and Sleep in Allergic Rhinitis
There are strong associations between nasal symptoms, especially nasal obstruction, sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness, especially in patients with hay fever caused by cedar pollen.
Abstract
Objective: Over 20 million people in Japan suffer from hay fever caused by cedar pollen, and every year, they are disturbed with severe symptoms during a season of just 2 to 3 months. Clinically, there is a big problem with quality of life, including daytime sleepiness and sleep problems. Method: To clarify the influence of hay fever on sleep and daytime sleepiness subjectively, 22 patients with hay fever caused by cedar pollen were enrolled. We evaluated sleep architecture and objective sleepiness before the season and during the season using PSG and MSLT. Results: Wake time after onset (WASO) showed significant increase during the season compared to before the season: from 16.4 to 29.7 min. AHI does not change for the worse during the season. In 11 patients with nasal obstruction, total nasal resistance was >0.3pa/cm/sec, out of 22, rate of REM-sleep decreased (from 24.2 to 20.8%), and mean MSLT decreased (from 12.4 to 8.5 min) significantly. Especially 4 out of 11 showed severe sleepiness that was recognized as disease (MSLT <5 min) during the season. Conclusion: There are strong associations between nasal symptoms, especially nasal obstruction, sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness.