Sinusitis is not sensitive nose as many patients seems to think. The sinuses are air sacs in the skull which lighten the skull and produce mucus to clean the bacteria and other particles out of the air you breathe out through your nose. Sinusitis occur when the infection or inflammation occurs in the sinuses.
Sinusitis is a condition in which the lining of your sinuses becomes inflamed.
The paranasal sinuses are in direct communication with the nose.
The sinuses are normally sterile.
If the sinus openings may become blocked, the mucus becomes congested in the sinuses, resulting in stagnation of secretion and finally bacterial growth.
Anything that causes swelling in your sinuses or keeps the cilia from moving mucus can cause sinusitis.
This can occur because of:
Changes in temperature or air pressure.
Using decongestant nasal sprays too much,
Smoking,
Swimming or diving.
Nasal polyps that block their sinus passages.
When sinusitis is caused by a bacterial or viral infection, you get a sinus infection.
Sinus infections sometimes occur after you had a common cold.
The common cold virus attacks the lining of your sinuses, causing them to swell and become narrow.
Your body responds to the virus by producing more mucus which get blocked in your swollen sinuses because the outlet is higher than the mucus collection.
This built-up mucus makes a good place for bacteria to grow.
The bacteria can cause a sinus infection.
Acute sinusitis is usually bacterial in origin.
Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae are the organisms most commonly found in adults.
In children, similar organisms are seen, with the addition of Moraxella catarrhalis.
In older children and young adults, Staphylococcus aureus is an occasional finding.
In people with low immunity, Fungal infection such as Candida, Aspergillus, and Phycomycetes may be the cause.
Risk factors include the following:
diabetes mellitus, cancer, hepatic disease, renal failure, burns, extreme malnutrition, and immunosuppressive diseases.
Presentation of sinusitis is often nonspecific.
Patients may present with a persistent common cold.
A common cold that starts to get better and then gets worse may be a sign of acute sinusitis.
Pain or pressure in some areas of the face (forehead, cheeks or between the eyes) is often a sign of blocked sinus drainage and can be a sign of acute sinusitis.
Pain in your forehead that starts when you lean forward can also be a sign.
Other symptoms may include a stuffy nose.
Some patients complain of dental pain or alteration in smell.
Fever is seen in fewer than 2% of individuals with sinusitis.
Facial tenderness to palpation is present.
Complete opacification of sinus on transillumination is present.
An X-ray of the paranasal sinuses usually confirms the presence of sinusitis as opacity in the sinuses.
Your doctor may prescribe an antibiotic.
You may take an antibiotic for 10 to 14 days, but you will usually start feeling better a couple of days after you start taking it.It is important to take this medicine exactly as your doctor tells you and to continue taking it until it is gone, even after you're feeling better.
If you have sinus pain or pressure, your doctor may prescribe or recommend a decongestant to help your sinuses drain.
Painkillers may be prescribed if there is severe pain.
Besides medicines you should help yourself by:
1.Get plenty of rest.
2.Lying down can make your sinuses feel more congested, so try lying on the side that lets you breathe the best.
3.Drink plenty of fluids.
4.Apply moist heat by holding a warm, wet towel against your face or breathing in steam through a cloth or towel.
5.Rinse your sinus passages with a saline solution.
You can buy an over-the-counter saline solution or ask your doctor how to make one at home.
In cases where the acute sinus infection does not cleared or become chronic, a sinus washout may be necessary to remove the mucus stuck in the sinuses.
Most doctors who had done an ENT posting like myself have done many of this washouts and should be able to do it for you.
This involves syringing of antiseptic solution through a hole in the septum separating the maxillary sinuses from the nose.
Sometimes syringing of frontal sinuses can be done through a tube inserted into the sinuses.
In severe case of chronic sinusitis, endoscopy surgery may be done to strip the lining of the maxillary sinuses and clean the cavity of the sinuses.
A new therapy is the use of phage therapy where viruses are used to cause bacteria lysis in the sinuses.
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