Sinusitis: How Serious is it?

It's winter again. The cold whether will surely bring different kinds of health problems such as colds, fever and sinusitis among others. When you have a nasty cold and stuffy nose that won't subside for a couple of weeks, you must never take it for granted and dismiss it as a simple case of cold gone wrong. You can have something more than colds that could lead to sinusitis.



Common signs of sinusitis include cough, feeling of facial swelling, occasional fever, and headache, plugged up nose, toothache and abundant thick yellow discharge from the nose. If sinusitis is left untreated, it can cause further complications to the nose, middle ear, and eyes that can last for months or even years. Examples of these complications include infection of the eye socket that may cause the eyelid to swell and become droopy. A person whose eye has been affected by sinusitis may lose the ability to move the eye that may result to permanent blindness. Frontal sinusitis may also cause blood clot in the sinus area. If a person with sinusitis experiences headache, visual problems, seizures, and mild personality changes it may be possible that the infection have spread to the brain. This may lead to coma or even death.



But what really causes sinusitis? Basically, there are two types of sinusitis namely acute and chronic sinusitis. Acute sinusitis meaning the condition is temporary usually lasting for not more than thirty days. The symptoms of acute sinusitis are virus, fungus, bacteria, scuba diving, nose blowing, medications and foreign objects. Acute sinusitis usually results from a cold that remains on too long and eventually becomes an infection. It is, therefore, important to treat acute sinusitis as soon as possible to prevent any infection from spreading.



Chronic sinusitis, on the other hand, refers to symptoms of sinusitis occurring frequently or for longer periods of time. Causes of this type of sinusitis includes allergies, temperature and humidity, asthma, defective mucous membrane, narrow sinuses, poor air quality, dehydration, weak immune system, stress and tumors.



Although serious cases of sinusitis are rare because of modern antibiotic treatments available today, it is still important that proper care and treatment should be exercised. Steps should be taken to prevent it from becoming chronic. Understand that sinusitis left untreated can cause serious infections so always take the necessary precautions and live a healthy balanced life.



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