Prevalence of hyperventilation syndrome in an allergy clinic, compared with a routine ENT clinic

Abstract

Objectives: A high prevalence of chronic hyperventilation syndrome in patients with asthma has been reported. We examined whether this phenomenon extended to allergy clinic patients in general and whether the prevalence was higher in patients attending a general allergy clinic compared with those attending a routine ENT clinic in our hospital.Methods: We examined the prevalence of hyperventilation syndrome in unselected, consecutive patients (n ¼ 100) seen in an allergy clinic. The validated Nijmegen questionnaire was completed by patients in the waiting room. We also administered the questionnaire to unselected, consecutive patients (n ¼ 100) in a routine ENT clinic.Results: There was no significant difference in prevalence of hyperventilation between allergy clinic and routine ENT clinic patients (25/100 vs 23/100).Conclusion: The result indicates a high prevalence of hyperventilation amongst hospital attendees in general. Consideration should perhaps be given to the possible role of hyperventilation in symptomatology.

Assessing the role of chronic hyperventilation in patients with nasal congestion: Our experience in 118 patients

“…The Nijmegen Questionnaire assesses 16 complaints related to different organ systems affected by hyperventilation and has been previously validated 4 . It has been found to be a quick, easy to administer and low‐impact assessment tool for chronic hyperventilation 5 and its use in a routine ENT clinic has been previously published 3 . The questionnaire was completed either before the consultation or when waiting for nasal endoscopy.…”

“…Ogata et al. 3 found 25% of patients with allergic rhinitis to have a positive Nijmegen score. In such cases, the clinician has to make a subjective judgement about the extent to which the nasal obstruction can be attributed to chronic hyperventilation.…”

Breathlessness and dysfunctional breathing in patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS): The impact of a physiotherapy intervention

“…The Nijmegen questionnaire is an established and acceptable outcome measure used within respiratory physiotherapy clinical practice (van Dixhoorn and Duivenvoorden, 1985;Law et al, 2018;Grammatopoulou et al, 2014;Ogata et al, 2006). The Nijmegen score proved useful in characterising these patients, but it must be acknowledged that this tool has not been validated in this patient population.…”

Subjective perception of nasal breathing ; identifying patient at risk of a poor surgical outcome

“…75 Symptoms include palpitations, chest pain, breathlessness, chest tightness, tingling of the lips and fingers, tetany, paresthesia, light-headedness, and dizziness. HVS is significantly related to sinonasal disease 342 and nasal obstruction is considered one of the HVS symptoms as a high number of patients (25-85%) with nasal obstruction complaint were diagnosed with HVS. 343,344 The pathogenesis of hyperventilation syndrome is unclear.…”