What to Know About Sinusitis

Being sick is never fun, but if your sinuses still bother you weeks after you have gotten over a pesky cold, you may have developed sinusitis. Sinusitis has many causes, but regardless of the cause, it can lead to annoying and painful side effects. If you would like to know more about sinusitis and what you should do if you think you have this condition, keep reading.

What Is Sinusitis?

You have multiple sinuses in your face, including one in each cheek, one on each side of the forehead, and several near the nose. The sinuses are hollow, but they contain a layer of a mucus membrane that helps filter the air you inhale, so you do not breathe a bunch of irritants into your lungs.

Inside your nose, these membranes exchange mucus with the nasal passages, and cilia work like tiny fingers to help push mucus down the throat. In some cases, however, fluid can get trapped in these sinuses. The longer this fluid stays trapped, the higher the risk of viral, bacterial, or fungal infections, which leads to sinusitis.

Sinusitis has many causes and risk factors, but it is often from allergies or a cold. Both can cause sinus blockage and inflammation, which increases the risk of improper drainage and infection. However, many other causes exist too, including nasal polyps, a deviated septum, and asthma.

In some cases, people can develop chronic sinusitis from their allergies, but exposure to tobacco smoke and immune system disorders are also common causes of chronic sinusitis.

What Are the Symptoms of Sinusitis?

Sinusitis often mimics a cold or severe allergies. Therefore, you may have a runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, cough, and postnasal drip. The postnasal drip may also lead to a hoarse voice as it irritates the throat. Many people also experience facial pressure, which can lead to pain and headaches. The pain is often near where the affected sinuses are, so pay attention to your cheeks, forehead, and nose.

Luckily, the sinus infection itself is not contagious, so you do not need to worry about catching or spreading it. However, if a virus caused the sinusitis, you may pass that virus to people if you are still contagious.

For example, if a common cold causes your sinusitis, you can't directly give someone sinusitis, but you can directly give them the cold that caused your sinusitis. In turn, it may or may not lead to sinusitis. If bacteria caused the sinusitis, you can't spread the sinusitis or the bacteria to anyone.

Are Treatments Available?

Treatment depends on the severity and type. If you have a cold and struggle with sinusitis, some over-the-counter medications can help. Medicine like ibuprofen can help with pain and inflammation, but nasal decongestants and mucolytics can help clear up congestion. Using a humidifier and flushing out your sinuses can also help.

In some cases, however, medical treatment may be necessary, such as antibiotics to help fight the infection. Depending on the reason behind your sinusitis, you may even need to make lifestyle choices like avoiding smoke and toxins.

For chronic sinusitis, surgery may be necessary to help reopen the sinuses. This is more common in patients with nasal polyps and a deviated septum, as surgery can fix those issues. Finally, in some cases, medications like steroids may help reduce inflammation.

Stop suffering from sinusitis. The first step is to determine why you have this problem. Treatment may involve fighting an infection or reducing allergy symptoms. If you would like to know more, contact us at Haden Allergy today. We look forward to helping you with your allergy-related issues.