North Richmond Today

• The overuse of antibiotics prescribed for sinusitis can lead to health risks or the development of antibiotic resistance.
• Antibiotic resistance can increase risks for patients who develop infections after other medical procedures.
• Patients with chronic sinusitis have alternative treatment options, such as balloon sinuplasty.

Even though the concept of antibiotic resistance has been talked about for years, many U.S. doctors still prescribe them for patients with sinus infections. 

But sinus specialists today, including Dr. John Ditto of Richmond Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers, often caution people against relying on a quick fix like antibiotics and recommend different treatments.

“The risk of antibiotic immunity is super-resistant organisms that can't be reached and can't be treated with conventionally. And then you may have to go to intravenous antibiotics,” Ditto told North Richmond Today. “And that's the major risk.”

Sinus infections are no fun. They can result in nasal congestion, headaches, coughing, facial pain or discomfort, and nasal drainage. There are two categories of sinusitis -- acute and chronic -- with "acute" referring to cases that last less than four weeks and "chronic" referring to infections that last more than 12 weeks.

When adults in the U.S. are diagnosed with acute sinusitis, about 90% are prescribed antibiotics, according to WebMD.

Such a reliance on antibiotics has been linked to changes in a patient's gut microbiota, which can increase the risk of chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease and cancer, the American Heart Association (AHA) said. The AHA says that overusing antibiotics could also be a risk factor in premature death.

“Then you have an infection that you can't manage, which can lead to complications, because apparently nasal sinuses are adjacent to the eye and to the brain. So it can lead to orbital infections and also brain infections, potentially meningitis and brain abscess,” Ditto said.

Today’s alternative treatment for chronic sinusitis sufferers is balloon sinuplasty, and it is typically recommended after other treatments for this condition have been ineffective. Balloon sinuplasty is a fairly straightforward in-office procedure, and few complications are associated with it, according to Healthline. There’s no cutting involved and no removal of bones or tissue during a balloon sinuplasty.

If you're interested in learning more about the symptoms of sinusitis and allergies, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.