Thick, discolored discharge from the nose (runny nose) Drainage down the back of the throat (postnasal drainage) Blocked or stuffy (congested) nose causing difficulty breathing through your nose. Pain, tenderness and swelling around your eyes, cheeks, nose or forehead.
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.
This can lead to a brain abscess or meningitis, rare and life-threatening conditions. While emphasizing that these complications are unlikely, Sindwani explains, “In most cases, the bacterial infection goes away, especially if you don't have underlying medical problems.”
You doctor may recommend antibiotics if: You have symptoms of a bacterial infection and you have not gotten better after 10 days, even with home treatment. Your symptoms are severe, or you have other problems, such as pus forming in your sinus cavities.
Antibiotics only will be needed if the infection is severe, recurrent or persistent.
Instead, your doctor looks largely at symptom duration to determine the source of your infection. A viral sinus infection will usually start to improve after five to seven days. A bacterial sinus infection will often persist for seven to 10 days or longer, and may actually worsen after seven days.
Acute sinusitis lasts for less than four weeks. Chronic sinusitis can last for more than 12 weeks. The majority of sinus infection sufferers will see their symptoms start to resolve after about 10 days. While one to two infections a year is considering normal, more than four requires medical attention.
Most people with sinusitis will feel better within two or three weeks and can look after themselves at home. You can help relieve your symptoms by: taking over-the-counter painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen.
Saline nasal irrigation, with nasal sprays or solutions, reduces drainage and rinses away irritants and allergies. Oral or injected corticosteroids. These medications are used to relieve inflammation from severe sinusitis, especially if you also have nasal polyps.
Specific tests your provider might order to diagnose sinus infection include: Nasal endoscopy. Nasal swabs. Your provider may use a soft-tipped stick to get a fluid sample from your nose.
If you have a viral sinus infection, you'll typically start to feel better in 5-7 days. Symptoms unique to bacterial sinusitis include: Your condition gets much worse after you seem to be improving. You have a high fever of 100° F (37.8°C) or higher.
Even if the infection becomes bacterial, 70% of the time the infection will go away within two weeks without antibiotics. In the event of severe headache, toothache, or face pain or for persisting fevers greater than 102 degrees you should be seen by your health care provider.
As your body works hard to fight off the sinus infection, you'll feel more tired than usual. Fatigue can be also be caused by head pain, a lack of adequate sleep, and difficulty breathing due to sinusitis.
The bacteria confine themselves in stubborn “biofilms,” making it difficult for your immune system or antibiotics to find and attack them. An overlap of additional factors such as smoking, environmental pollutants, and deviated septum, further complicate the picture of chronic sinusitis.
As discussed, if your symptoms are caused by a virus (like a cold or flu virus), you won't need antibiotics. But if you have a sore throat due to bacteria — for instance, strep throat or bacterial tonsillitis — you will need antibiotics.
The typical amoxicillin dosage for a sinus infection is 500 mg every 8 hours, or 875 mg every 12 hours, taken for 5 to 10 days. This may vary based on the severity of your infection. Body weight will determine the dosage for children. You can take amoxicillin with or without food.
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.