Sinusitis, also known as a sinus infection, occurs when the sinuses become inflamed and swollen, often due to an infection. Understanding the symptoms, treatments, and prevention strategies can help you manage sinusitis effectively and reduce the risk of recurrent episodes. Dealing with sinusitis can be difficult and when you know how to manage your symptoms, you can properly function without the looming fear of prolonged pain and inflammation.
Dealing With Sinusitis
When dealing with sinusitis, it’s important to be able to identify the common symptoms. This will help you know when to see your ENT doctor and how to properly treat your symptoms. Sinusitis symptoms can vary, so it’s crucial that you can identify how it’s manifesting in your body. Common symptoms include:
- Nasal congestion
- Facial pain and pressure
- Thick yellow or green mucus from the nose
- Postnasal drip
- Reduced sense of smell and taste
- Headache
- Sore throat
- Cough
- Fatigue
Often, you will want to start treating your symptoms at home. You should be sure to drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated and thin out your mucus. To relieve congestion, you can inhale steam from a bowl of hot water or take a hot shower to help clear nasal passages. Use saline sprays or rinses as needed to keep nasal passages moist and reduce congestion.
If you’re dealing with severe pain, you can take over-the-counter pain relievers to reduce inflammation. Steroid nasal sprays can reduce inflammation in severe cases. Depending on the cause of your sinusitis, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics if it’s bacterial.
If your sinusitis is caused by allergies, you should be sure that you’re managing your allergic reactions. In severe cases, you may need surgery to improve your sinuses and reduce the persistence of sinusitis.
Contact Our ENT Doctor Today
Make sure you understand when you’re dealing with sinusitis and how to manage it. Contact your ENT doctor to learn more today.