The stuffy nose and rhinitis

Because of the benign course and availability of efficacious symptomatic th erapy, the stuffy nose will likely never be considered one of the major dil emmas facing modem medicine. Nevertheless, this condition remains a serious economic factor in health care, responsible for patient morbidity, a large number of annual physician office visits and hundred of millions of dollar s in annual sales to the pharmaceutical industry. This article reviews the relevant anatomy and physiology of the nasal passage, with comment on diffe rential diagnostic points and therapeutic options.