A 40-year-old man presented with chronic rhinosinusitis and dysphonia. Intraoral examination revealed blue-purple oropharyngeal tumours due to Kaposi sarcoma. The patient was HIV-infected.
Allergic rhinitis (AR) reduces quality of life as a result of impaired psychological well-being and perceived impaired cognitive functioning. Few studies have measured cognitive functions objectively and it remains uncertain whether AR leads to an objective reduction in cognitive functions.The present study investigated whether AR is associated with a decrement in several aspects of cognitive functioning. Furthermore, the study investigated whether AR patients invest more 'mental effort' in order to achieve the same cognitive performances as healthy controls.Twenty five patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR) and 26 healthy controls, matched for age, education and sex, were tested on a battery of time-demanding and strenuous objective cognitive tests and subjective questionnaires, both before and after nasal provocation (NP). The cognitive functions assessed were sustained attention, short- and long-term memory and speed of information processing. Mental effort was assessed using visual rating scales.Sustained but not short cognitive performance was impaired in patients after NP. Patients showed an increased effort on short cognitive tests.SAR patients suffer from cognitive performance decrements that can be compensated by additional mental effort for short tasks only.
'%3e%3cpath fill='%23012169' d='M0 0v30h60V0z'/%3e%3cpath stroke='%23fff' stroke-width='6' d='m0 0 60 30m0-30L0 30'/%3e%3cpath stroke='%23C8102E' stroke-width='4' d='m0 0 60 30m0-30L0 30' clip-path='url(%23b)'/%3e%3cpath stroke='%23fff' stroke-width='10' d='M30 0v30M0 15h60'/%3e%3cpath stroke='%23C8102E' stroke-width='6' d='M30 0v30M0 15h60'/%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e)
