Your tests may include: A culture of nasal drainage collected via a swab of the nose or sinus. Blood tests (erythrocyte sedimentation rate, CBC, C-reactive protein) Allergy testing, especially for a chronic sinus infection or repeat sinus infections.
A sinus infection is diagnosed in a physical exam by a primary care doctor, who will look inside your nasal cavity and check for sinus pressure or tenderness by gently touching or feeling your face.
Your doctor will swab your nose to collect mucus. Culturing it in a laboratory will reveal which type of bacteria is causing the infection so the right antibiotic can be prescribed.
If a sinusitis patient does not respond to treatment, doctors may order laboratory tests, such as blood tests, sweat tests, nasal fluid tests and biopsies of nasal linings or sinuses, to rule out other conditions. Treating chronic sinusitis can be just as complex as diagnosing it.
Unilateral facial pain / swelling. Persistent bleeding/crusting with unilateral nasal obstruction. Persistent clear watery discharge (CSF leak - presents like a dripping tap from tip of nose) Persistent bulging eye associated with partial or total loss of vision, painful eye movements or double vision.
Tests for Sinusitis
Your doctor will talk to you about your symptoms, and then they'll look inside your nose. They may start out with an otoscope, an instrument that helps doctors examine the ear and nose. Signs of swelling, congestion, and infection may be obvious, and you may learn right away that it's sinusitis.
An untreated sinus infection may cause ansomnia, a decrease, or a complete loss of smell. Inflammation and blockage of your sinus passageways or damage to your olfactory nerves cause ansomnia. In many cases, ansomnia is only temporary but can become permanent.
See a doctor if you have: Severe symptoms, such as severe headache or facial pain. Symptoms that get worse after improving. Symptoms lasting more than 10 days without getting better.
Typically, antibiotics are needed when: Sinus infection symptoms last over a week. Symptoms worsen after starting to get better. Sinusitis symptoms are severe (high fever, skin infection or rash, extreme pain or tenderness around the eyes or nose)
Sinusitis usually goes away on its own. Sinusitis is usually caused by a virus, so antibiotics won't help. Over-the-counter medicines and home treatment can help you feel better. Antibiotics do work if sinusitis is caused by bacteria.
A bad cold is often mistaken for a sinus infection. Many symptoms are the same, including headache or facial pain, runny nose and nasal congestion. Unlike a cold, a sinus infection symptoms may be caused by bacterial infections.
The main symptoms of sinusitis are pain and a feeling of pressure in your face. You may also get a blocked or stuffy nose, green or yellow mucus coming from your nose, a raised temperature, a cough and a general feeling of being unwell.
But you may need imaging for an evaluation of chronic sinusitis or recurrent sinusitis to look for structural causes. You may also need imaging if you have severe acute symptoms or signs that your infection might be spreading. An X-ray sinus series can usually identify fluid in the sinuses or nasal polyps.
Sinus infections can be viral or bacterial. “Either way, it's best to stay home,” Wigmore says. Viral sinus infections are often contagious. If you have had symptoms longer than one week, or if you have severe facial pain, teeth/jaw pain, or fever, you may have a bacterial infection and should consult your doctor.
Rinsing out your sinuses and nasal passages offers relief for symptoms of sinus infections, allergies, cold and flu. In one study, patients with chronic sinus issues performed a daily nasal rinse and saw an improvement in symptom severity of more than 60%.
pain, swelling and tenderness around your cheeks, eyes or forehead. a blocked nose. a reduced sense of smell. green or yellow mucus from your nose.
Since the sinuses are difficult to see, the physician may rely on x-rays to help make the diagnosis. The simplest x-ray is called a plain film and it shows some of the basic structures in the skull. However, to really get a good look at the sinuses it is often necessary to get an imaging study called a CT scan.
A viral sinus infection is much more common than a bacterial one. With viral sinusitis, a virus infects the lining of your facial and nasal cavities. It is typically caused by a viral upper respiratory infection. A bacterial sinus infection is caused by bacteria infecting the lining of your facial and nasal cavities.