OBJECTIVES: Examine patient characteristics and patterns of intranasal corticosteroid (INS) use among individuals diagnosed with allergic rhinitis (AR) from a large, US retrospective claims database. METHODS: The i3 Invision™ Data Mart was used from January 1, 2006 through December 31, 2010. AR patients aged ≥12 years were included if they received an aqueous INS formulation (with first such date identified as index date) and had continuous insurance coverage from 6 months before through 24 months after index date. Patients diagnosed with chronic rhinitis or nasal polyps were excluded. Data are descriptive in nature. RESULTS: The sample consisted of 163,473 individuals with a mean age of 41 years (SD=15), 59% female, and 55% residing in the southern US. Patients were most commonly prescribed generic fluticasone propionate (44%), mometasone (34%), or triamcinolone (10%) and had a high degree of related comorbidities, including sinusitis (40%), asthma (15%), and otitis media (12%). Treatment patterns during the first year after index date: a mean of 2.1 INS prescriptions were filled (median=1.0; SD=1.8), adherence as measured by the medication possession ratio averaged 18% (median=8; SD=16), and persistence averaged 135 days (median=30; SD=134). Furthermore, 7% of patients switched INS products during their first year of use, with 5% of patients who initially received generic INS switching to a branded INS product. CONCLUSIONS: Although INSs are considered the gold standard for symptomatic treatment of AR, this examination of a large US claims database demonstrated that patients with AR who filled at least 1 aqueous INS prescription generally did not use their INS for an extended period of time.