Are antibiotics useful in case of acute sinusitis?

Still, many doctors rashly prescribe for acute sinusitis antibiotics. A new study now shows, that the drug therapy has little advantage over placebo.

Although the guidelines for restraint ask doctors prescribe in an inflammation of the paranasal sinuses is still quite fast antibiotics. In a randomized clinical trial the researcher Jane Garbutt of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the antibiotic amoxicillin, however, has made no clinically relevant effect. The study included 166 patients participated with acute sinusitis. They were given ten days either three times daily or placebo Amoxicillin 500mg. On the third and second days, the results do not differ in the two groups. Only on seventh day, there was a slight advantage for antibiotic therapy. Here reported 74 percent higher than a relief compared to 56 percent in the placebo group. Three days later, the difference was gone.

Acute sinusitis (rhinosinusitis) is one of the most common reasons for the use of antibiotics at all. According to Garbutt, many patients expect that their doctor prescribes medication. In US now tries to limit the use by the guideline specifies certain discomfort for antibiotic therapy. These include symptoms such as high fever, swelling around the eyes, inflammatory skin redness, severe facial pain, photophobia, or stiff neck. Even with the threat of complications, for patients which has chronic inflammatory lung disease or immunosuppressed patients, is recommended administration of antibiotics .

Frequent use of antibiotics may cause resistance.

In many cases, however, the administration of antibiotics is not necessary. In addition, antibiotics have considerable side effects. So they can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and rashes. In addition, the frequent and often inappropriate use of antibiotics in recent years has meant that increasingly could develop resistant pathogens. Often antibiotics are not effective or reliable, some diseases can be treated worse today than earlier .

A sinus infection is often caused by a cold. Colds are usually caused by respiratory viruses, less often by bacterial pathogens. After a viral infection, it may lead to an additional colony with bacteria. The viruses or bacteria trigger inflammation, making the mucous membranes swell and the secretion drainage is impeded from the sinuses. This thickens the liquid, and the cavities are filled with thick mucus. Frequently these accompanied by pain in the forehead, jaw and around the eyes, which usually worse when you lean forward. The patients usually feel tired and exhausted. Rhinosinusitis may occur acutely and quickly disappear. Only in rare cases it becomes chronic.