In line with its mission, the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony makes every effort to provide reliable medical content supported by the latest scientific knowledge. The additional flag “Checked Content” indicates that the article has been reviewed by or written directly by a physician. This two-step verification: a medical journalist and a doctor allows us to provide the highest quality content in line with current medical knowledge.

Our commitment in this area has been appreciated, among others, by by the Association of Journalists for Health, which awarded the Editorial Board of MedTvoiLokony with the honorary title of the Great Educator.

Sinusitis is an unpleasant and troublesome disease that likes to come back, especially in the fall and winter. The disease is caused by bacteria that multiply in the secretions from the paranasal sinuses.

The paranasal sinuses are the air spaces located in the facial skeleton, located near the nasal cavity and closely connected with it.

A bit of anatomy

  1. jaw
  2. leading
  3. wedge-shaped
  4. I don’t come out

The causes of sinusitis

Factors contributing to sinusitis

  1. anatomical defects of the nasal cavity – the most common curvature of the nasal septum
  2. polypy nose
  3. frequent viral infections of the upper respiratory tract
  4. allergic rhinitis
  5. dry, polluted air
  6. too low or too high ambient temperature
  7. smoking – toxic impairment of the ciliary epithelium
  8. rotten teeth

Division of sinusitis

  1. acute sinusitis – starts suddenly and lasts no more than 4 weeks
  2. recurrent acute sinusitis – there are at least 4 episodes of acute sinusitis per year, lasting an average of 7 days, and no evidence of chronic inflammation
  3. subacute sinusitis – the infection lasts from 4 to 12 weeks and does not become a chronic process after resolution
  4. chronic sinusitis – infection lasts longer than 12 weeks and is most often the result of inappropriate or no treatment in the acute period of inflammation; often there is a lack of regeneration of the ciliary epithelium in the sinuses

Bacteria that cause sinusitis

Symptoms of sinusitis

  1. facial pain – tenderness in the sinus projection
  2. stuffy nose
  3. headache – worsening when you lean forward
  4. the presence of secretions on the back of the pharynx
  5. olfactory disorder
  6. the presence of purulent discharge in the nasal cavities
  7. in the acute process: fever, malaise, feeling broken
  8. in addition, they may be accompanied by symptoms such as toothache, earache, cough, unpleasant smell from the mouth

Complications of sinusitis

  1. swelling of the eyelids
  2. orbital abscess
  3. meningitis
  4. brain abscesses
  5. cavernous sinus thrombosis

Diagnosis of sinusitis

Treatment of sinusitis

  1. conservative – primary treatment in acute inflammation and as the first step in treatment of chronic inflammation. This treatment includes antibiotic therapy and symptomatic treatment (nasal decongestants, antipyretics and analgesics, liquefying drugs, topical steroids, inhalation of steam)
  2. operational – in the absence of improvement after conservative treatment of chronic sinusitis. There are two basic types of surgical treatment:
  3. radical – it consists in draining the diseased sinus into the nose, not always in the place of its anatomical mouth, and complete removal of the mucosa from the inside of the diseased sinus; these treatments are now performed sporadically
  4. functional (FESS -) – clearing the nasal cavity (correction of septal deviation, removal of hypertrophied turbinates) or sinus openings with endoscopic methods, e.g. balloon surgery. These treatments are low invasive and are now the standard treatment for sinusitis
  5. new methods of treatment (under tests) – removal of bacteria and their clusters in the form of biofilm from sinuses with chronic inflammation by endoscopic sinus irrigation and suctioning with the Hydrodebrider; method tested by prof. H. Skarżyński from the Institute of Physiology and Pathology of Hearing in Kajetany.

Leave a Reply