Rhinosinusitis better known as sinusitis is a common condition that is characterized by the inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, the air-filled spaces which facilitates breathing and similar functions of the nasal cavity. Rhinosinusitis is a common medical condition for people of all ages, accounting for an average of 35 million cases annually in the United States alone.
Occurrence of the said medical condition is quite randomized as there is no such predilection when it comes to race, age or gender while it is however, prevalent from early fall to early spring in the US or during cold seasons in other countries.
Nevertheless, given the various advancement in medical technologies, rhinosinusitis can still be a life-long problem in some extreme cases, as such infection heals spontaneously with or without medication. On the contrary, prolonged rhinosinusitis could lead to more serious health complications such as meningitis, orbital cellulitis and brain abscess.
Furthermore, rhinosinusitis is caused by viral infections in the upper respiratory tract. More so, several conditions can also contribute to the development of rhinosinusitis such as simple colds and flu, influenza A and B viruses, adenovirus and enterovirus among other causative agents.
Rhinosinusitis is classified into three categories namely; acute, sub-acute and chronic, basing on the degree and extremity of the case. Acute forms of rhinosinusitis is last less than a month while the other two forms sub-acute and chronic can last up to 4-8 weeks and more than 8 weeks respectively.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis of rhinosinusitis involves a series of medical test and exams including a commuted tomography (CT) scans, nasal endoscopy and a through analysis of the patient’s medical history or in some cases family background as rhinosinusitis are sometimes genetically passed.
Symptoms
There are a lot of symptoms of rhinosinusitis, the most common of which includes nasal congestion, extreme nasal discharge, post-natal drip, facial pain or pressure which usually is unilateral, fever, cough, fatigue, decreased sense of smell or sometimes even temporary inability to smell, maxillary dental pain and ear pressure among others.
However, due to the common nature of its symptoms, it’s still advisable to consult your doctor in order to get proper medical attention.
Treatment
Treatment for prolonged and life-long cases of rhinosinusiitis involves surgery and other adequate medical therapies as prescribed by a licensed medical doctor, depending on a case-per-case basis. Still, some extreme cases of chronic rhinosinusitis are yet to be completely understood, hampering the development of sophisticated medical treatments.
