What is Sinusitis?
Sinusitis is an infection or inflammation of the sinuses. A typical case of acute sinusitis begins with a cold or flu or an allergy attack that causes swelling of the nasal membranes and increased watery mucous production. The membranes can become so swollen that the tiny openings from the sinuses become blocked. When mucus and air cannot flow easily between the nose and sinus, abnormal pressures occur in the sinuses, and mucus can build up in them. This creates a pressure-pain in the forehead or face, between and behind the eyes, or in the cheeks and upper teeth, depending on which sinuses are involved.
Is Sinusitis Dangerous?
Most cases of sinusitis are not serious and respond promptly to natural cures or to medical treatments that are readily available. However, an infection that is in the sinus is also very close to the eye and to the brain. It is rare, but extension of a sinus infection to the eye or brain is possible. Furthermore, it is not healthy for the lungs to have infected mucus dripping down from infected sinuses. Bronchitis, chronic cough, and asthma are often aggravated, or even brought on, by sinusitis.
Who Gets Sinusitis?
Actually, anyone can catch a sinus infection, but certain groups of people are more likely to develop sinusitis.
People with allergies: An allergy attack, like a cold, causes swelling in the membranes of the nose that will block the sinus openings, obstruct the mucous drainage, and predispose to infection.
People who are frequently exposed to infection: schoolteachers and health workers are especially susceptible.
People who smoke: Tobacco smoke, nicotine, and other pollutants impair the natural resistance to infection.
What Will a Doctor Do to Cure my Sinusitis?
Treatment will depend on the diagnosis of your physician. Infections may require either antibiotics or surgery, or sometimes both, as a cure. Acute sinusitis most likely will improve on medication, but chronic sinusitis more often requires surgery. If your symptoms are due to allergy, migraine, or some other disease that mimics sinusitis, your doctor will have alternative treatment plans.
What Can I Do to Cure my Own Sinus Problems?
Manage your allergies if you have them. Use a humidifier when you have a cold, and sleep with the head of your bed elevated. This promotes sinus drainage. Decongestants can also be helpful, but they contain chemicals that act like adrenaline and are dangerous for persons with high blood pressure, irregular heart rhythms, heart disease, or glaucoma. They are also like stimulants that can produce sleeplessness. You should consult your physician before you use these medications.
Avoid air pollutants that irritate the nose, especially tobacco smoke.
Live by good health practices that include a balanced diet and regular exercise.
Minimize exposure to persons with known infections if possible, and practice sanitary health habits when you must be around them.
A large variety of non-prescription medications is available as a sinusitis cure or remedy, but it is folly to try them before a proper diagnosis is established. The best advice you can ever get, of course, is what is given to you by your physician who evaluates your own special symptoms and examines your own nose and sinus areas accordingly.
For more information, visit Article Source:
