Preventing Sinusitis: The Full Checklist
Feb 10, 2017
Sinusitis is a chronic and miserable condition where the walls of your sinuses remain inflamed for weeks, months, or even years at a time. The associated symptoms are just as bad as you might imagine: terrible pain, pressure, headaches, and fevers are not uncommon, and some patients experience radiating anguish that can spread into the mouth and teeth as well. Many patients also have difficulty sleeping.
The causes of sinusitis are manifold, and can include allergens, viral loads, bacterial infections, pollutants, dry air, or other airborne chemical compounds such as smoke. Because sinusitis can arise from so many sources, preventing its appearance requires a vigilant understanding your particular, individual triggers.
This article offers a good place to start. It includes an exhaustive list of the many irritants which can set off sinusitis by jump starting the cascade of inflammation, congestion, and obstruction that are the signature symptoms of the disorder. This article also includes some lifestyle recommendations you may find useful, including:
Air conditioners help stabilize the temperature in either high or low weather.
Electrostatic filters attached to heating and air conditioning equipment are also helpful in removing allergens from the air.
A chlorine treated swimming pool irritates the lining of the nose and sinuses. Divers often experience nasal congestion, which results in a sinus infection, where water is forced into the sinuses from the nasal passages.
Excessive consumption of dairy products like milk thickens the mucus and causes your nasal passage to narrow down, which further results in pain and headaches.
Stress makes sinusitis symptoms get worse. If you’ve had sinusitis in the past, stress can trigger it or make it worse.
All good points, but none is as valuable as knowing yourself: learn which triggers are likely to set you off, and which treatments have been shown to be the most effective against the problem.
Individualized care like this is our area of expertise at the Los Angeles Sinus Institute. We offer a battery of testing protocols modeled after the Mayo Clinic, including on-site allergy testing, visual inspections, CT scan and more to ensure that you always get the most detailed and current information possible.
To learn more about the causes of your sinusitis and receive the best care in the Los Angeles area, please contact the LA Sinus institute for a personalized workup and allergy panel today.