RESUMO
PURPOSE: Nasal stuffness is one of most common symptom in children who suffer from rhinitis although there is still debates at to the best measurable device. The aim of the study was to evaluate the sniff nasal inspiratory pressure (SNIP) with respiratory pressure meter and compare this with the clinical status of patients. METHODS: We enrolled 57 rhinitis patients who visited our hospital during June 2005 to July 2006. They were treated with intranasal steroid spray (mometasone furoate) for first 2 weeks. To evaluate the outcome of treatment, we used symptom score (SS) and measured the SNIP with respiratory pressure meter (Micro RPM, Micro Medical, Rochester, UK) and also measured peak nasal inspiratory flow (PNIF) with peak nasal inspiratory flow meter (Youlten peak flow meter, Clement Clarke Int., London, UK) before and after the therapy. Skin prick test was performed to all patient to classify the atopic (AR) and non-atopic rhinitis (NAR). RESULTS: Among 57 identified patients (median age, 7 years 9 months), 40 AR and 17 NAR were studied. Most patient showed clinically improvement with 2 weeks intranasal steroid therapy (0 wk SS=4.9, 2 wk SS=1.7 in AR; 0 wk SS=4.5, 2 wk SS=1.5 in NAR, P77.6 L/min, P>0.05). And there was no correlation between SNIP and PNIF measurement. CONCLUSION: The respiratory pressure meter is a useful device to evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness and clinical improvement in pediatric rhinitis patients.