SINUSITIS?

What Are Sinuses?

• They’re air spaces in your skull lined with mucous membranes. Most
people have four sets of nasal sinuses:
• Two in the forehead above the eyes
• One inside each cheekbone (dark triangles seen in this image)
• A group of them, called the ethmoid sinuses, behind the bridge of the nose
• Another group behind the nose and underneath the brain called the
sphenoid sinuses
• Sinuses are like fingerprints: Everybody's are different. Some people have
no frontal sinuses or just one.
What Is Sinusitis?

• It’s inflammation in your sinuses. Tiny, hair-like structures called cilia

(magnified here) move mucus across sinus membranes and toward an
exit. All of your sinus cavities connect to your nose to allow a free
exchange of air and mucus. Infections or allergies make sinus tissues
inflamed, red, and swollen.
• How It Feels
• Most people have a stuffy nose and pain or pressure in several areas
around the face or teeth. There's usually a nasal discharge that may
be yellow, green, or clear. You may also have fatigue, trouble with
sense of smell or taste, cough, sore throat, bad breath, headache,
pain when you bend forward, and fever.
When It Won't Go Away
•.
• Bacteria can make their home in blocked sinuses, but they aren’t the
only cause. Anatomy, allergies, polyps, immune system problems, and
dental diseases may also be to blame.
Nasal Polyps

• If your sinuses remain inflamed, sinus membranes can thicken and

swell. The swelling may be enough to cause grape-like masses called
polyps (shown here). They can jut out from the sinus into the nasal
passage and block your nasal airway.
Types of Sinusitis
• Acute sinusitis means that the infection develops quickly (over a few
days) and lasts a short time. Many cases of acute sinusitis last a week
or so but it is not unusual for it to last 2-3 weeks
• Chronic sinusitis means that a sinusitis becomes persistent and lasts
for longer than 12 weeks. Chronic sinusitis is uncommon
What are the symptoms of acute sinusitis?

• Symptoms that commonly occur include:

• Pain and tenderness over the infected sinus. The pain is often
throbbing and worse when you bend your head forwards. Chewing
may be painful.
• Nasal symptoms. You may have either:
• A blocked nose. This may occur in one or both nostrils, sometimes with loss
of smell.
• A runny nose. Yellow or green discharge may mean infection.
• A high temperature (fever).
• Other symptoms that may occur include:
• Headache.
• Bad breath.
• Toothache.
• Cough.
• A feeling of pressure or fullness in the ears.
• Tiredness.
• In children, symptoms may include:
• Irritability.
• Ear discomfort.
• Snoring.
• Mouth breathing.
• Feeding difficulty.
• Nasal speech.
What are symptoms of chronic sinusitis?
•
• Severe headache
• Runny nose
• Morning headache
• Sinus pain
• Tenderness over sinus region
• Watering eyes
• Chronic cough
• Bad breath
• Sore throat