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Chronic sinusitis: treatment, causes and symptoms

Chronic sinusitis is a long time, the current inflammation of the paranasal sinuses are prone to relapses. It is a chronic sinusitis are the most common reasons for the treatment of patients to otolaryngologists.

According to statistics, chronic inflammation of the sinuses lead among ENT infections in children and adults. It is noteworthy that in the pathological process involved often multiple sinuses. Isolated sinusitis are a rare disease. Chronic polysinusitis affects the quality of life of the patient, violates his overall health and ability to work.

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Causes of chronic sinusitis

Experts identify the following causes of chronic sinusitis:

  • Respiratory infections, which were not fully treated.
  • Inadequate therapy with the use of antibacterial drugs.
  • The presence of foreign bodies in the nasal cavity, deviated septum of the nose, which affects the patency of the nasal passages.
  • The growth of adenoids, as the most common cause of sinusitis in children.
  • Polyps in the nasal cavity, swelling of the nose.
  • Allergy causing permanent swelling of the nasal mucosa.
  • Injury skull and face fractures.
  • Disturbances in the functioning of the immune system acquired and congenital nature.

The presence of such harmful habits as Smoking and exposure to secondhand smoke increases the risk of chronic sinusitis. Similar negative effects have various toxic substances inhaled by man.

Other risk factors are:

  • Lung disease of chronic;
  • Intolerance to aspirin;
  • Cystic fibrosis;
  • HIV and AIDS;
  • Bronchial asthma, etc.

Vasomotor chronic sinusitis can be the result of allergic rhinitis on alcoholic beverages, and perfumes. Potential risk factor is high ambient humidity and otherthe negative influence.


Symptoms of chronic sinusitis

Symptoms of chronic sinusitis vary depending on a number of factors, first and foremost is the location of the inflammation and the nature of the infection.

Sinusitis most often develops with colds, there is:

  • The increase in body temperature;
  • Increasing weakness;
  • There is a common malaise.

Specific symptoms for chronic and acute sinusitis are the following clinical signs:

  • The appearance of discharge from the nasal passages (they can be green or yellow, sometimes they contain blood);
  • The sense of smell is disturbed;
  • Nose is stuffed, you may feel one-sided nasal congestion from inflammation;
  • The emergence of a dry cough that has a tendency to strengthen during the night rest;
  • Headaches, pain in the facial area radiating to different parts;
  • Flushing of the skin from the inflamed sinuses.

However, despite the similarity of symptoms of acute and chronic forms of sinusitis, there are some differences. So, chronic course of the disease the symptoms are more prolonged in time, but less intense.

For chronic sinusitis characterized by latent period in which the symptoms for a certain period can completely disappear and not bother the patient. However, a relapse is inevitable.

In childhood chronic inflammation is practically no different from symptoms in adults.

Parents should be very careful and when the following symptoms of sinusitis in child, seek medical help:

  • The appearance of blue circles under the eyes;
  • Fatigue, are not typical for healthy children;
  • Blanching of the skin;
  • Loss of body weight;
  • The lack of desire to eat.

Suspected sinusitis should occur and in that case, if the child observed from the nose purulent discharge for 10 days or more, and at night increases the cough.

Diagnosis of chronic sinusitis involves conducting several studies:

  • Medical history, interviewing the patient.
  • Diaphanoscopy. The procedure involves the scanning of the sinuses using a small light bulb in a dark room. The light thus introduced into the oral cavity. This method allows you to set the preliminary diagnosis and to get an idea about the status of the sinuses.
  • The x-rays. This method is the most common in the diagnosis of sinusitis in patients of any age.
  • The implementation of diagnostic puncture. Gives information about the nature and form of the disease.
  • CT scan and MRI. These methods allow you to obtain as much information about the state of the test body.
  • Endoscopic methods of diagnostics. Allows not only to visualize the status of the sinuses, but also to perform minimally invasive surgery.

It's also possible the passage of sinusoscopy, which is based on the use of ultrasonic waves. There is also a method such as thermal imaging, using the imager. To implement techniques to measure the skin temperature of the person at the place where sinuses.

If you suspect an allergic nature of chronic sinusitis, the doctor will conduct a skin test using the most common allergens.


Treatment of chronic sinusitis

Treatment of chronic sinusitis is a complex and lengthy process. Often, the bacterial flora that causes a disease has time to develop resistance to common drugs and does not die even under the most intensive impact on it.

The tasks that stand before the doctor and patient are reduced to the following points:

  • To eliminate the etiological factor that led to the development of the disease.
  • To normalize the drainage and aeration of the sinuses.
  • To eliminate the symptoms of the disease.
  • Prevent recurrence of sinusitis.

Therapy of chronic sinusitis should be comprehensive and include anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial treatment. It is also worth to pay attention to the immune status of the patient, etc.

Symptomatic treatment

Treatment of chronic sinusitis is to reduce swelling of the mucous membrane of the sinuses it includes the use of medications. Removal of edema will allowto normalize the outflow of fluid from the sinuses and speed up the healing process. To minimize swelling used vasoconstrictors, such as from flatulence, Naphazoline, Sanorin, Galazolin etc. Although this is over-the-counter drugs, they should not be used for more than five days.

If you have Allergy symptoms, it shows the assignment of antihistamines. To relieve inflammation and reduce body temperature used drugs such as Nurofen, Paracetamol, Aspirin.

Antibiotics are chosen individually taking into account the following factors:

  • The age of the patient;
  • Duration of the disease;
  • The sensitivity of the pathogen;
  • The epidemiological situation in the area of residence.

Antibiotic therapy

The use of antibiotics in chronic sinusitis is justified, because without them to get rid of the infection impossible.

Most often doctors prescribe Amoxicillin (Augmentin, Amoxiclav, Amoxil, Ospamox), Doxycycline (Doxyline, Monodox, Yunidoks), Biseptol, Bactrim.

Not always chronic sinusitis caused by bacterial flora. Therefore before starting a long course of antibiotics, you must investigate the cause of the infection.

Treatment with antibiotics should be completed as recommended by your doctor. Most often, the complete course is 2 weeks, but in some cases it may be extended. It is not necessary to interrupt treatment immediately after dealing with the symptoms of sinusitis. Cancel the drug should the doctor.

Antibiotics can help get rid of the disease. But do not forget about the existing side effects of drugs of this category. From taking antibiotics suffering the human immune system, making the body vulnerable to other diseases.

Immunomodulatory drugs

One of the priorities in the treatment of chronic sinusitis is to increase the body's immunity in General and local protection in particular. Therefore, experts recommend receiving immunomodulators, which not only accelerate the healing process, but prevent the development of diseases in the future.

Increase local immunity, to clear the sinuses of mucus allows the drug Sinuforte. It is based on the extract of the plant Cyclamen. After discontinuation of the drug should not fear the development of addiction, which is an important component of successful treatmentit is a chronic sinusitis. In order to get the desired effect, Sinuforte you only have to apply once every 24 hours for 7 days.

Treatments

Effective therapeutic procedure for chronic sinusitis is lavage of the sinuses. This allows you to get rid of accumulated mucus, clear nasal passages and normalize breathing. Irrigate the nose several times a day, as needed. Procedure should be performed with caution in order not to harm their own health.

At the doctor's office you can go through the wash procedure using the apparatus of AMIC. Thus the nasal passages are introduced catheters. One of them occurs the flow of the antiseptic solution, and another catheter, this solution sucked. Together with the antiseptic of the nasal cavity is washed out pathogenic content.

Outside the acute stage, you can use this method as a steam inhalation. For a variety of useful solutions used leaf sage, eucalyptus leaves, chamomile, oregano and other herbs. It is possible to add the solution for inhalation of essential oils, tinctures of propolis. All of these funds have a disinfecting effect.

To achieve the effect of steam inhalation, you need to use vasoconstrictor drops that will alleviate the swelling with the nasal passages and normalize breathing. Only in this case will be able to obtain therapeutic effect. Hold the inhalation with a stuffy nasal sinuses does not make sense.

Can't do steam inhalation before the age of 5 years, with high body temperature during the chills, in the presence of a predisposition to bleeding, inflammatory diseases and a tendency to allergic reactions.

Perhaps the passage of physiotherapy, which allows you to speed up the healing process. It can be procedures such as: UHF, mud therapy, laser therapy, etc. However, these techniques are contraindicated, for example, the presence of polyps in the nose, so you need to pre-consult with the doctor.

When the effect of conservative treatment is missing, it is necessary to resort to surgical intervention. Modern methods of ridding the patient of sinusitis are: ultrasound surgery, endoscopy.

To ensure the absence of relapse of chronic sinusitis after treatment is impossible.

However, to reduce the frequency of exacerbations of the disease by using preventive measures, such as the strengthening of local and General immunity, the elimination of anomalies in the nasal cavity, timely treatment of infectious disease, and addressing dental problems.