NW LA Times

Millions of Americans are afflicted with sinus infections each year -- very often during the winter -- and all too often, antibiotics are prescribed to treat the condition.

According to one SoCal doctor, this can lead to long-term issues as bacteria develop a resistance, and he recommends both preventive strategies and treatment focused on restoring normal function to the sinuses.

The sinuses are hollow, air-filled cavities in the skull that can become inflamed due to a variety of reasons.

Viruses, bacteria or even fungus can inflame the sinuses. If a sinus infection is viral, then it can be passed to other people. Typical symptoms of a sinus infection can include a runny nose, a severe headache, congestion and facial pain. Not addressing these symptoms over the long term can intensify the symptoms and make the pain worse.

Dr. Matt Hershcovitch of SoCal Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers believes antibiotics are overprescribed for this issue.

"Unfortunately, it is absolutely true: Treating chronic sinusitis with antibiotics is done far too often. I'm going to say many providers are extremely generous with the number of antibiotic prescriptions they give a patient for this chronic problem," Hershcovitch told NW LA Times.

Overuse of antibiotics is not only an issue of immediate treatment, but it can actually lead to problems in the long term, with infections becoming harder to treat as bacteria develop resistance to common antibiotics.

"There's already significant amounts of antibiotic immunity and resistance -- the bacteria are selected for this resistance -- because of overuse of antibiotics. The problem that occurs is when you have one of these highly resistant bacteria that then starts growing very fast, growing very aggressively in the sinuses, you end up with very few tools at your disposal to treat this problem," Hershcovitch said. 

More permanent solutions are available for those who experience chronic sinus infections.

"The best thing to do is actually to restore normal sinus function," Hershcovitch said. "When sinuses are not functioning properly, they lead to significant bacterial overgrowth, stagnation of airflow, and you have this really thick, nasty, moist environment of the sinuses that bacteria love. What we can do is actually dilate and enlarge the passageways open to the sinuses, and this achieves two things: It restores normal airflow and function of the sinuses, and it allows sinuses to drain out. When they drain out, air goes in and it becomes dry. A dry sinus is a happy and healthy sinus. That's what we aim to achieve with our patients."

Ways to avoid sinus infections during winter include: washing your hands, thorough house cleaning, cleaning carpets, changing rugs, fighting mold, avoiding pet dander, using a quality humidifier, drinking enough water and wearing a mask when you go out.

If you're interested in evaluating your sinus or allergy symptoms, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.