When do you really need antibiotics for that sinus infection?

It was February, and clinic was teeming with respiratory infections of all kinds: mostly the common cold, but also bronchitis, pneumonia, and sinus infections. The first patient on my schedule was a healthcare provider with “sinus infection” written down as her main issue.* She’d had about two weeks of nasal and sinus congestion which she blamed on a viral upper respiratory infection (URI, also known as the common cold). Her two young kids had been sick with colds all winter, so she wasn’t surprised to have these symptoms, along with endless postnasal drip and a cough. Her congestion had improved a bit at one point, and she thought that she was finally getting better. But then, the day before her appointment, she awoke with throbbing pain between her eyes, completely blocked nasal passages, and, more concerning to her, green pus oozing from her left tear duct. She had body aches, chills, and extreme fatigue. “Do I maybe need antibiotics?” she asked. Most sinus infections don’t require antibiotics Ah, sinus infections. The New England Journal of Medicine recently published a clinical practice review of acute sinus infections in adults, that is, sinus infections of up to four weeks. The need for an updated review was likely spurred by the disconcerting fact that while the vast majority of acute sinus infections will improve or even clear on their own without antibiotics within one to two weeks, most end up being treated with antibiotics. It is this discrepancy...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Asthma and Allergies Cold and Flu Drugs and Supplements Infectious diseases sinus infection Source Type: blogs