SINUSITIS AND ANTIBIOTICS
Antibiotic treatments for sinusitis still work, says a new study. Resistance in chronic sinusitis patients can be prevented if a careful and strict approach to care is followed. Learn more about it in this two-minute video clip. In the study, doctors made sure they knew the bacteria causing the infection, and were sure that the antibiotics would work. No significant increase in levels of bacteria-resistant bugs occurred. Most of the patients were treated using "culture-directed therapy," in which doctors performed a minimally invasive procedure to make sure the infection was caused by bacteria.
There is new research out tonight that shows people with chronic sinus infections don't have to worry about developing a resistance to antibiotics if the drugs are part of a targeted treatment program. This can lead to far more effective antibiotic treatments for sinusitis.
The big concern for patients who have chronic sinusitis is that they need often round after round of antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance has emerged as a major public health threat, prompting the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to campaign against overuse of the medications.
But this study provides some reassurance about the efficacy of antibiotic treatments for sinusitis.
Krista Erikson has been suffering from chronic sinusitis, bouts of sinus infections that last longer than two weeks or keep coming back. “Recently I’ve been on a constant course of antibiotics, so it’s kind of been at bay,” she says.
Amber Glassberg has a similar refrain. “I take numerous medications but the antibiotics are really what provide me with relief. The longer I’m on something the longer between a reoccurrence,” says Amber.
But that constant course of antibiotics is a big concern for doctors.
Sinus infection is the fifth most common diagnosis for which antibiotics are prescribed. That’s why experts are concerned that these antibiotic courses would lead to resistance.
But according to new research, antibiotic resistance due to recurring courses of antibiotics for chronic sinusitis infections should not be a concern. The research shows that resistance in chronic sinusitis patients can be prevented if a careful and strict approach to care is followed.
Dr. Jordan Josephson, a sinus specialist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, says, “In most instances, if patients would actually just take the antibiotic for the full 10 to 14 day course for an acute infection, they would get better and they wouldn’t have a problem. For chronic sinusitis they may need 3 to 8 days minimum.”
In the study, doctors made sure they knew the bacteria causing the infection, and were sure that the antibiotics would work. No significant increase in levels of bacteria-resistant bugs occurred.
Most of the patients were treated using "culture-directed therapy," in which doctors performed a minimally invasive procedure to make sure the infection was caused by bacteria. For instance, they can wash out the sinus, collect the mucus, and culture it out to see whether the bacteria grows on a culture plate if exposed also to antibiotics. If they don’t grow in the presence of an antibiotic, they know that antibiotics will be effective.
“Since I’ve been on the antibiotics I’ve been feeling a lot better, a lot less bothered by my sinusitis,” states Kristina.
“I think the message with this study is take your antibiotics for the full course, without stopping in the middle. Even if you are feeling better the bacteria are still in your body. And you need to get it all taken care of before you stop,” informs Dr. Josephson.
The researchers say the findings add more evidence that antibiotics treatments for chronic sinusitis can be effective, as long as they are used carefully. This begins with knowing which bugs specifically are causing the infection, and which antibiotics are effective against the bacteria.
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