What type of sinus problems

The infection causes your sinuses and nasal passages to become inflamed, and this inflammation is called sinusitis. The sinuses are small air pockets located behind your forehead, nose, cheekbones, and in between the eyes. The sinuses produce mucus, which is a thin and flowing liquid that protects the body by trapping and moving germs away.

Sometimes, bacteria or allergens can cause too much mucus to form, which blocks the openings of your sinuses. Excess mucus is common if you have a cold or allergies. This mucus buildup can become thick and encourage bacteria and other germs to build up in your sinus cavity, leading to a bacterial or viral infection.

Most sinus infections are viral and go away in a week or two without treatment. Acute sinusitis has the shortest duration. A viral infection brought on by the common cold can cause symptoms that typically last between 1and 2 weeks. In the case of a bacterial infection, acute sinusitis may last for up to 4 weeks.

Seasonal allergies can also cause acute sinusitis. Subacute sinusitis symptoms can last for up to 3 months. This condition commonly occurs with bacterial infections or seasonal allergies. Chronic sinusitis symptoms last for more than 3 months. Bacterial infection may be to blame in these cases. Additionally, chronic sinusitis commonly occurs alongside persistent allergies or structural nasal problems.

Anyone can develop a sinus infection. However, certain other health conditions and risk factors can increase your chances of developing one, such as:. It may be difficult for parents to detect a sinus infection in their children. Signs of an infection include:. Symptoms of acute, subacute, and chronic sinus infections are similar. However, the severity and length of your symptoms will vary.

Diagnosis and Tests. Treatments and Therapies. Related Issues. Statistics and Research. Clinical Trials. Article: Association of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease and quality of life in patients Sinusitis -- see more articles.

Reference Desk. Not all over-the-counter medicines are recommended for children of certain ages. If you are considering using a sinus rinse, visit Sinus Rinsing for Health or Religious Practice for how to do so safely.

You can help prevent sinus infections by doing your best to stay healthy and keep others healthy, including:. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link.

Antibiotic Prescribing and Use. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Sinus Infection Sinusitis. Minus Related Pages. You might have a sinus infection, also called sinusitis Antibiotics are not needed for many sinus infections, but your doctor can decide if you need an antibiotic.

The specialist will check for underlying factors such as allergies, asthma, structural defects, or a weakness of the immune system. Biopsies: A danger of more serious types of fungal sinus infection is that the fungus could penetrate into nearby bone. Only a bone biopsy can determine if this has happened.

Biopsies involving sinus tissue are taken with flexible instruments inserted through the nose. Biopsies of the sinus tissue are also used to test for immotile cilia syndrome, a rare disorder that can cause people to suffer from recurrent infections, including chronic sinus infection, bronchitis and pneumonia.

Antibiotics are standard treatments for bacterial sinus infections. Antibiotics are usually taken from 3 to 28 days, depending on the type of antibiotic. Because the sinuses are deep-seated in the bones, and blood supply is limited, longer treatments may be prescribed for people with longer lasting or severe cases.

Overuse and abuse of antibiotics have been causing a major increase in antibiotic resistance. Therefore, patients with sinus symptoms should consider taking an antibiotic only if symptoms including discolored nasal discharge persist beyond days. Antibiotics help eliminate a sinus infection by attacking the bacteria that cause it, but until the drugs take effect, they do not do much to alleviate symptoms.

Some over-the-counter medications can help provide relief. Topical nasal decongestants can be helpful if used for no more than three to four days. These medications shrink swollen nasal passages, facilitating the flow of drainage from the sinuses. Overuse of topical nasal decongestants can result in a dependent condition in which the nasal passages swell shut, called rebound phenomenon. Antihistamines block inflammation caused by an allergic reaction so they can help to fight symptoms of allergies that can lead to swollen nasal and sinus passages.

Over-the-counter combination drugs should be used with caution. Some of these drugs contain drying agents that can thicken mucus. Only use them when prescribed by your allergist. These prescription nasal sprays prevent and reverse inflammation and swelling in the nasal passages and sinus openings, addressing the biggest problem associated with sinus infection.

Topical nasal corticosteroid sprays are also effective in shrinking and preventing the return of nasal polyps. If drug therapies have failed, surgery may be recommended as a last resort. It is usually performed by an otolaryngologist.

Anatomical defects are the most common target of surgery. Your surgeon can fix defects in the bone separating the nasal passages, remove nasal polyps, and open up closed passages.

Sinus surgery is performed under either local or general anesthesia, and patients often can go home on the same day.

Essentially yes, the definition of sinusitis is the same as sinus infection. Sinuses are normally air-filled pockets in the bone of the face. They are found in your forehead, at the bridge of your nose, way behind your eyes and at the apples of your cheeks. If these air pockets become blocked with fluid, germ like viruses or bacteria and sometimes fungus can multiply in these dark hard-to-reach spaces — and then you have an infection.

There are two major forms of sinus infections also called sinusitis : acute and chronic. Chronic sinus infections may drag on for months at a time. Both acute and chronic sinus infections can be viral or bacterial. Some long-standing infections are fungal. First you need to know the cause of the sinus infection.

Is it viral or bacterial?