Melatonin and Allergic Rhinitis

Atopy is a tendency to produce Ig-E antibodies in response to allergens and to develop allergic clinical symptoms such as allergic rhinitis, allergic bronchial asthma, and atopic dermatitis. Among them, allergic rhinitis (AR) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the intranasal mucosa, characterized by nasal symptoms reducing the quality of life. Management of AR maintains entirely symptomatic and is intended only to relieve the undesirable effects of mediators resulting from the allergic inflammatory reaction. The only disease-modifying treatment is immunotherapy, which can eliminate the pathophysiology of the disease. However, it is a long-lasting modality with several limitations and contraindications. In recent years, melatonin has been evaluated in various allergic inflammatory disorders due to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and has been suggested as a promising therapeutic. The role of melatonin has not been investigated in the treatment of AR, even though AR has a similar pathogenesis to those of atopic dermatitis and allergic bronchial asthma. This review is aimed to examine the pathophysiological mechanism of AR and illuminate the common pathways with atopic dermatitis and allergic bronchial asthma to discuss the potential hypothetical therapeutic role of the melatonin in AR, similar to the other two atopic diseases