Sinusitis

Sinusitis means infection or inflammation of the sinuses, which are air-filled spaces inside the bones of the face.

There are many symptoms, including thick nasal mucus, a plugged nose, and pain in the face. Other symptoms of sinusitis include:

• pain, swelling and tenderness around the cheeks, eyes or forehead
• a blocked or runny nose
• a reduced sense of smell
• green or yellow mucus coming from the nose
• a high temperature

More other symptoms

• a headache
• toothache
• bad breath
• a cough
• a feeling of pressure in the ears

It may also cause snoring at night and a person to sound nasal when they speak.

Treatment

How you can treat sinusitis yourself

You can often treat mild sinusitis without seeing a GP by:

• getting plenty of rest
• drinking plenty of fluids
• taking painkillers, such as paracetamol or ibuprofen (do not give aspirin to children under 16)
• avoiding things that trigger your allergies
• not smoking
• cleaning your nose with a salt water solution

If you have a high temperature or you do not feel well enough to do your normal activities, try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people until you feel better.

See a GP if:

• you have sinusitis and are very unwell
• painkillers do not help or your symptoms get worse
• symptoms do not get better after 3 weeks
• you keep getting sinusitis

Treatment for sinusitis

If a GP thinks sinusitis needs treatment, they may prescribe medicines such as:

• steroid nasal sprays or drops to reduce the swelling in the sinuses – these might need to be taken for a few months
• antihistamines if an allergy is what is causing symptoms

Rarely, it may need antibiotics. This is not common as sinusitis is usually caused by a virus, not bacteria.

The GP may refer the patient to an ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialist if they:

• still have sinusitis after 3 months of treatment
• keep getting sinusitis
• only have symptoms on 1 side of the face

The specialist may recommend surgery for some people.

Surgery

Surgery to treat chronic sinusitis is called functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS).

FESS is carried out under general anaesthetic (where the patient asleep). The surgeon can widen the sinuses by either:

• removing some of the blocked tissue
• inflating a tiny balloon in the blocked sinuses, then removing it