Allergic rhinitis and ear pain in flight

Abstract

Background: Ear pain is the most common physiologic incident in hypobaric chamber training in the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, and the incidence of ear pain has been gradually increasing. There has been a concomitant increase in the incidence of allergic rhinitis in Japan. We hypothesized that the increased incidence of ear pain may be due to the increased incidence of eustachian tube dysfunction associated with allergic rhinitis.

Objective: To explore whether there is an association between allergic rhinitis and ear pain experienced in hypobaric chamber training.

Methods: We examined 9 years of training records and noted whether there was a seasonal influence on the occurrence of ear pain in 7047 trainees. In addition, we studied the prevalence of allergic rhinitis among trainees during a representative training year using a questionnaire method, noting association between allergic rhinitis and the occurrence of ear pain.

Results: Comprehensive review of training records showed 429 (6.1%) of 7047 trainees complained of ear pain. Ear pain occurred more often in spring than the other 3 seasons. The questionnaire data showed 202 (23.0%) of 878 trainees had allergic rhinitis. Trainees with allergic rhinitis complained of ear pain more often in the spring than trainees without allergic rhinitis.

Conclusions: Active allergic rhinitis is closely associated with the occurrence of ear pain in hypobaric chamber training. A similar phenomenon might occur in an actual flight. Special attention should be paid to not only common cold but also allergic rhinitis in both hypobaric chamber training and actual flights.