Sinusitis affects your sense of small and taste.
What is sinusitis?
Sinusitis is usually caused by an upper respiratory tract infection following a cold or flu virus. The sinuses can become secondarily infected by bacteria. Occasionally, an infected tooth or a fungal infection can also cause sinusitis.
Symptoms
- facial pain or pressure
- nasal discharge
- blocked nose
- reduced sense of smell
- ear ache
- sore throat
- headache
- fever
- toothache
- bad breath
Treatment
Most people with sinusitis will feel better within 1 week. You can help relieve symptoms by:
- regular painkillers
- nasal decongestants (for up to 1 week)
- steam inhalation
- rinsing your nose with a saline solution
If after treatment, your symptoms do not improve, you may need sinus surgery to improve the drainage of your sinuses.
Functional Endoscopic Sinus Surgery (FESS), this procedure is carried out under general anaesthetic as a day case. An endoscope (a small telescope) is inserted through your nose so that the surgeon can see the opening of your sinuses and insert small surgical instruments to widen the natural sinus drainage pathways. Any tissue such as nasal polyps that are blocking the sinuses can be removed at the same time if necessary. Most patients have small dressings inserted inside the nose at the end of the operation. These are usually removed within 2 hours.
The operation is effective in the majority of patients. Complications are rare, however side effects may include:
- crusting inside the nose
- bleeding from the nose
- sinus infection