Is an Antibiotic for a Sinus Infection Effective?

Although one of the most common reasons for a sinus infection is a cold or flu, treating it like you would a cold or flu isn’t necessarily the answer. Taking an antibiotic for a sinus infection may be practically ineffective. A British study has shown that an antibiotic for a sinus infection, or steroid sprays for treating a sinus infection, do not help relieve the symptoms any faster than doing nothing at all.

Humans have four pairs of sinuses in their facial area that produce mucus and are connected to nasal passages. A sinus infection is born when the mucus cannot drain and the air flow is blocked. Usually the tissue lining becomes inflamed. Because a sinus infection can bring about headaches, tenderness in the cheeks and painful pressure around and behind the eyes, most people want a treatment fast. It is estimated that of the 25 million Americans who went to the doctor complaining of the pressure and pain, 90 percent of them were given an antibiotic for the sinus infection.

To see if an antibiotic for a sinus infection would be helpful, doctors studied 240 patients who had sinus infection symptoms. Some were given an antibiotic for the sinus infection, while others were given no medication. At the end of the study, those who were given an antibiotic for the sinus infection were well only a day or two before those who didn’t receive any treatment. The main reason for this is because antibiotics treat bacterial infections, but sinus infections are caused by bacteria and viruses. Antibiotics don’t help with viral infections.

Still, prescribing an antibiotic for a sinus infection is not entirely out of the question. Some doctors who don’t recommend prescribing an antibiotic for a sinus infection may do so if a patient has been suffering from sinus infections symptoms for more than seven days and has a fever. This is rare, though, since most who suffer from a sinus infection don’t have such severe symptoms.