A Simple Guide to Sinusitis
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What is sinusitis?
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Sinusitis is a condition in which the lining of your sinuses becomes inflamed.
The sinuses are the air chambers in the bone behind your cheeks, eyebrows and jaw.
They produce mucus, a fluid that cleans bacteria and other particles out of the air you breathe. Tiny hairs called cilia sweep mucus out of your sinuses so it can drain out through your nose.
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.
What causes sinusitis?
---------------------------
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, and
Swimming or diving.
Some people have growths called 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've had a cold.
The 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, but it gets blocked in your swollen sinuses.
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 systemically impaired hosts, 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.
What are the signs of acute sinusitis?
-------------------------------------------
Presentation of sinusitis is often nonspecific.
Patients may present with a persistent cold.
A 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.
How is acute sinusitis treated?
------------------------------------
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.
How to take care of sinusitis?
-----------------------------------
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.
How is chronic sinusitis treated?
---------------------------------------
In cases where the acute sinus infection does not cleared or become chronic, a sinus washout may be necessary to remove the mucus stucked in the sinuses.
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 bacterial viruses are used to cause bacterila lysis in the sinuses.
-----------------
What is sinusitis?
----------------
Sinusitis is a condition in which the lining of your sinuses becomes inflamed.
The sinuses are the air chambers in the bone behind your cheeks, eyebrows and jaw.
They produce mucus, a fluid that cleans bacteria and other particles out of the air you breathe. Tiny hairs called cilia sweep mucus out of your sinuses so it can drain out through your nose.
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.
What causes sinusitis?
---------------------------
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, and
Swimming or diving.
Some people have growths called 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've had a cold.
The 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, but it gets blocked in your swollen sinuses.
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 systemically impaired hosts, 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.
What are the signs of acute sinusitis?
-------------------------------------------
Presentation of sinusitis is often nonspecific.
Patients may present with a persistent cold.
A 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.
How is acute sinusitis treated?
------------------------------------
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.
How to take care of sinusitis?
-----------------------------------
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.
How is chronic sinusitis treated?
---------------------------------------
In cases where the acute sinus infection does not cleared or become chronic, a sinus washout may be necessary to remove the mucus stucked in the sinuses.
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 bacterial viruses are used to cause bacterila lysis in the sinuses.
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