How You Can Diagnose A Sinus Infection

Sinus infections can be acutely painful and distracting, but that doesn’t mean every patient should immediately jump for the phone to schedule an appointment with these symptoms appear.

New guidelines from the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery are now preaching greater caution in diagnosis, and greater conservatism in the use of antibiotics – a long overdue move that has some infectious disease experts cheering:

They’re going farther than their previous guidelines in saying that even if you’re really sick, it’s OK to wait on the meds. And they’re breaking ranks with their fellow physicians in infectious disease and internal medicine, who say everyone with a bacterial infection should get an antibiotic.

So how can you know what sort of care you need when sinus pain strikes? Start with those guidelines and consider alternate remedies such as saline rinses and nose sprays before you begin a course of prescription medication.

And if it gets really bad and stays that way? See your Los Angeles sinus surgeon for relief.