الفهرس 
Respiratory system epitheliumOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Asthma is a major public health problem that affects many people allover the world and its prevalence is increasing particularly in urban areas. The nasal and bronchial mucosa present similarities and most patients with asthma also have rhinitis .Epidemiological, pathophysiological and clinical studies have strongly suggested a relationship between rhinitis and asthma and data have lead to the concept that upper and lower airways may be considered as a unique entity influenced by a common, evolving inflammatory process, which may be sustained and amplified by interconnected mechanisms. Allergic rhinitis is correlated to, and constitutes a risk factor for the occurrence of asthma.
This study was conducted on 40 children divided into two main groups: thirty asthmatic children were selected from patients attending chest clinic, pediatric hospital, Ain Shams University as group I (patients) and ten healthy children matched with patients in age and sex as group II (control)
Group I was subdivided into two subgroups: 15 asthmatic children with allergic rhinitis as group Ia , 15 asthmatic children without allergic rhinitis as group Ib. Also group I was further subdivided according to the severity of asthma into three subgroups mild, moderate and severe asthmatic.
All included children were subjected to the following:
• Full medical history: especially history of asthmat attacks, symptoms suggestive of allergic rhinitis and if the patient is receiving an allergy controller.
• Thorough clinical examination: with stress on chest examination signs of atopy and allergic rhinitis.
• -Pulmonary function tests in the form of spirometery to detect: FVC: forced vital capacity, FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 second, FEV1%: FEV1 to FVC as percentile and FEF (25-75%): forced expiratory flow at 25-75% of forced vital capacity.
• Nasal mucosal specimens were taken via disposable nasal brushes by rubbing against the middle one third of the inferior turbinate to be examined by high power microscope after fixation and staining.
• -Complete blood count for HB, R.B.C count and total Leucocytic count
• Serum immunoglobulin-E
This study was done to assess the nasal mucosal pattern of inflammation in asthmatic children with and without manifestation of allergic rhinitis.
It was observed in this study that there was high significant increase in nasal mucosal eosinophils and neutrophils in asthmatic children in relation to control. Also there was significant increase in nasal mucosal eosinophil and neutrophils with increasing severity of asthma.
Regarding presence of allergic rhinitis it was revealed that in asthmatic with allergic rhinitis there was significant increase in nasal mucosal eosinophil and neutrophils in relation to asthmatic without allergic rhinitis.
This revealed that with asthma there are inflammatory changes which can occur in the upper airways even with absence of local allergic disease as allergic rhinitis which can increase the intensity of the changes, also these changes increase with increasing severity of asthma.