{"id":1918,"date":"2022-10-14T19:39:38","date_gmt":"2022-10-15T00:39:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/?p=1918"},"modified":"2022-10-14T19:39:39","modified_gmt":"2022-10-15T00:39:39","slug":"what-causes-chronic-sinus-infections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/what-causes-chronic-sinus-infections\/","title":{"rendered":"What Causes Chronic Sinus Infections?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The sinuses are mucus-lined pockets in the face, located behind the cheeks, nose and forehead. They produce mucus to trap bacteria and debris. Sometimes, inflammation can cause the sinuses to become blocked, trapping the mucus and causing unpleasant symptoms. This is known as sinusitis or a sinus infection. When this happens short-term, it is said to be acute; if these symptoms persist 12 weeks or longer, the <a href=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/sinus\/sinusitis\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sinus infection<\/a> is said to be chronic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2>How Is Chronic Sinus Infections Diagnosed?<\/h2>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/sinus-infection-treatment-1280x925.jpg\" alt=\"Shot of a young man blowing his nose outdoors\" class=\"wp-image-1921\" width=\"297\" height=\"215\" srcset=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/sinus-infection-treatment-1280x925.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/sinus-infection-treatment-768x555.jpg 768w, https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/sinus-infection-treatment-1536x1111.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/sinus-infection-treatment.jpg 2036w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 297px) 100vw, 297px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p>According to an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/books\/NBK441934\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">article<\/a> published in the National Library of Medicine, \u201cChronic sinusitis is diagnosed when at least two of the following four symptoms are present and occur for more than 12 weeks:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Purulent drainage [thick white, yellow or brown discharge from the nose].<\/li><li>Facial and\/or dental pain.<\/li><li>Nasal obstruction [congestion].<\/li><li>Hyposmia [decreased sense of smell].\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2>What Are the Causes of Chronic Sinus Infections?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Common causes of chronic <a href=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/sinus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sinus<\/a> infections include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Allergies. <\/strong>Allergic reactions are your immune system\u2019s response to normally-harmless substances known as allergens. When the chemical histamine is produced, it causes inflammation throughout the body, including within the sinuses.<\/li><li><strong>Respiratory tract infections.<\/strong> These infections, which can be caused by viruses or bacteria, can also cause inflammation of the sinuses.<\/li><li><strong>Nasal polyps.<\/strong> These are benign growths that develop in the lining of the nasal and sinus cavities. They can block the nasal passages and the sinuses, causing fluid to build up.<\/li><li><strong>Deviated nasal septum. <\/strong>The septum is the wall that divides the nostrils. If it is crooked, it is said to be deviated. This can cause a blockage of the sinus passages and make you more susceptible to sinus infections.<\/li><li><strong>Exposure to irritants.<\/strong> Irritants such as secondhand smoke and pollutants can also cause symptoms of sinus infections that don\u2019t resolve until the irritant is eliminated.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2>How Are Chronic Sinus Infections Treated?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Some options for treating chronic sinus infections include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Allergy medications. <\/strong>Addressing the underlying problem can help relieve sinusitis symptoms.<\/li><li><strong>Saline.<\/strong> Using a saline nasal spray or saline rinse with a Neti pot can flush out mucus and clear the sinuses.<\/li><li><strong>Corticosteroids.<\/strong> These can be administered via nasal spray, oral medication or injection.<\/li><li><strong>Removal of polyps.<\/strong> This can be done with certain medications and, in severe cases, surgery.<\/li><li><strong>Antibiotics.<\/strong> If your sinus infection is caused by bacteria, you can pick up prescribed antibiotics to clear the infection.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For more information or to schedule an appointment, call <span class=\"company-name \">Red River ENT Associates<\/span> today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><ul class=\"related-posts\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/why-is-my-nose-runny\/\" class=\"related-post\">Why Is My Nose Runny?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/whats-causing-your-postnasal-drip\/\" class=\"related-post\">What\u2019s Causing Your Postnasal Drip?<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/what-is-rhinoplasty-and-other-frequently-asked-questions\/\" class=\"related-post\">What Is Rhinoplasty? And Other Frequently-Asked Questions<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The sinuses are mucus-lined pockets in the face, located behind the cheeks, nose and forehead. They produce mucus to trap bacteria and debris. Sometimes, inflammation can cause the sinuses to become blocked, trapping the mucus and causing unpleasant symptoms. This is known as sinusitis or a sinus infection. When this happens short-term, it is said&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1921,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"The sinuses are mucus-lined pockets in the face, located behind the cheeks, nose and forehead.","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":""},"categories":[24,18],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1918"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1921"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redriverent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}