List of tablets for the treatment of sinusitis

Sinusitis is a fairly common, and at the same time, a very dangerous complication of a common rhinitis. In the treatment of this disease, general drugs play a central role - various tablets for sinusitis - antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs, as well as topical drugs - rinsing solutions, drops and sprays. In this article, we will tell you in detail what drugs are used to treat sinusitis, and what is their effect.

Sinusitis is a fairly common, and at the same time, a very dangerous complication of a common rhinitis. In this article, we will tell you in detail what drugs are used to treat sinusitis, and what is their effect.

It should be borne in mind that sinusitis is a serious disease that can lead to serious complications, and in some cases, death. In view of this, self-medication for sinusitis is excluded - all your actions must first be discussed with a doctor.

Sinusitis - what is it?

Sinusitis is an inflammation of the maxillary sinuses of the nose. This is one of the variants of sinusitis (inflammation of the paranasal sinuses).

Viruses and bacteria enter the sinuses quite often, along with the inhaled air. It is not dangerous if the outflow of mucus from the sinuses is not disturbed, and the mucus itself is quite liquid. However, with inflammation of the mucous membrane (with acute respiratory viral infections, rhinitis), the walls of the sinuses increase in volume and can overlap the mouth of the sinus. As a result, bacteria begin to actively multiply in the sinus, mucus and pus accumulate. The waste products of bacteria enter the bloodstream, causing intoxication. This is accompanied by a violent reaction from the immune system, in particular, a significant rise in body temperature.

The main causative agents of sinusitis (as well as other types of sinusitis) are:

• in acute form - streptococcus (about 50% of cases), haemophilus influenzae (12%); much less common pathogens such as moraxella, Staphylococcus aureus, various anaerobes;
• with chronic sinusitis, anaerobic bacteria (Peptococcus, Bacteroides, Veillonella, Prevotella, Fusobacterium, Corynebacterium) are more often found, less often - Staphylococcus aureus, pneumococcus, Haemophilus influenzae, as well as microscopic fungi.

Clinical picture

Patients suffering from sinusitis complain of the following symptoms:

• feeling of pressure in the sinuses, "fullness", "bursting" in the face;
• headache that becomes worse when bending or turning the head sharply;
• pain when pressing on the projection of the maxillary sinuses (on the sides of the wings of the nose);
• high body temperature (above 380C);
• purulent nasal discharge (may be absent if the sinus opening is completely blocked);
• pus may also drain down the throat;
• nasal congestion (not always).

Sinusitis can be unilateral (one sinus becomes inflamed), or bilateral (both sinuses are affected).

Treatment - general scheme

Treatment of sinusitis includes several areas:

• destruction of the infection inside the inflamed sinus;
• improving the outflow of mucus from the sinus, elimination of pus;
• removal of inflammation in the affected area of ​​the mucous membrane;
• fight against intoxication accompanying an acute inflammatory process;
• relief of the patient's well-being.

Thus, it is not enough to use just one drug to cure sinusitis completely - the disease must be treated in a complex manner.

Let's talk about what drugs should be used in the treatment of sinusitis, what is their role, and whether it is possible to do without some of them.

Preparations in tablets

Taking drugs of general action (tablets, solutions and powders for injections, etc.) today is a generally accepted approach in the treatment of sinusitis - practice shows that it is impossible to limit oneself to local remedies. Contrary to popular myth, pills for sinusitis are no less effective than injections.

In this case, injections are resorted to in the event that the patient's condition is serious, and it is necessary to ensure that the drug quickly enters the bloodstream. Intramuscular or intravenous administration should only be practiced in a hospital setting, not on an outpatient basis. If the treatment is started in a timely manner, and the patient's condition is satisfactory, preference is given to pills - taking them causes much less discomfort, and in some cases this factor is important (for example, when it comes to a sick child).

Antibiotics

Treatment of sinusitis is not complete without taking antibiotics, since they affect the root cause of the disease - a bacterial infection.

And if a bacterial rhinitis can still be really cured without them, resorting to frequent rinsing and the active use of antiseptics, then with sinusitis such procedures are practically useless - a very small fraction of the medicine injected through the nose gets into the sinus cavity, what can we say about attempts to wash out pus. The only solution is to act on the infection through the blood.

The list of antibiotics used in the treatment of sinusitis is presented in Table 1. It should be noted that the antibiotics of the first choice for the treatment of acute sinusitis are drugs based on amoxicillin and ampicillin; the rest are resorted to in case of individual intolerance to penicillins, or if the pathogen is resistant to these drugs.

Table 1 Antibiotics used in the treatment of sinusitis, incl. sinusitis.

In order for antibiotic treatment to be as effective as possible, it is recommended to pass a bacteriological culture of nasal secretions before prescribing them. This study provides information on the types of bacteria that caused the infection and also shows their sensitivity to various types of antibiotics. At the same time, it should be noted that the standard growth time of a bacterial culture is 4-5 days; letting a purulent disease take its course for such a significant period of time is not worth it, therefore, the doctor usually prescribes an antibiotic immediately, based on the symptoms of the disease, as well as the patient's antibiotic history.Bacteriological research is resorted to if the prescribed pills for sinusitis were ineffective, or if the patient is faced with multiple episodes of sinusitis (for example, he suffers from sinusitis after each runny nose, more often 2 times a year). In addition, mucus culture should be a mandatory step in the treatment of chronic sinus inflammation.

Anti-inflammatory

Another group of drugs that the treatment of sinusitis cannot do without is anti-inflammatory pills. It should be noted that this is only an auxiliary treatment, since anti-inflammatory drugs relieve the symptoms of inflammation, but do not affect its cause - infection.

Anti-inflammatory drugs mask the presence of bacteria in the body, but they do not help get rid of them.

However, anti-inflammatory drugs are good helpers in combating the effects of intoxication. They help to quickly relieve fever, relieve headaches. In serious condition, they are simply irreplaceable. Thus, they should be taken as needed - if the body temperature exceeds 38 degrees, a severe headache worries, it is impossible to fall asleep, etc.

What anti-inflammatory pills can be used for sinusitis? If the disease is moderate, paracetamol can be taken. This medicine is presented in pharmacies under various names - Panadol, Tylenol, Ifimol, Valadol, Efferalgan, etc. The drug is taken after meals with plenty of water. There are many paracetamol-based drugs for children.

If sinusitis has a severe course, paracetamol may not always be able to cope with the fever. You will need a stronger drug, ibuprofen. It is contraindicated in children under 6 years of age.

It is worth noting that with the correct selection of the antibiotic, the body temperature is normalized within 1-2 days of admission, and the need for anti-inflammatory disappears.

Topical preparations

Topical preparations - drops, sprays and solutions for washing - improve the outflow of mucus in the nasal cavity, remove pus from the nasopharynx and thus accelerate the recovery from sinusitis.

Nasal medications used to treat sinusitis:

1. Vasoconstrictor (decongestants) - due to a decrease in the volume of blood vessels, they relieve swelling of the mucous membrane, due to which the lumen of the respiratory tract, as well as the mouths of the paranasal sinuses, expands. The result is an improvement in the outflow of pus from the sinuses. In addition, the use of vasoconstrictor drops can serve as a preparatory stage before using other nasal preparations, for their better penetration into the sinuses. Among the drugs in this group are Otrivin, Sanorin, Naphtizin, Nazol and analogues. It must be remembered that the course of vasoconstrictor use should not exceed 7 days.
2. Oil-based drops - Sinupret, Pinosol, Sinuforte. The essential oils contained in these drops have anti-inflammatory and antiseptic effects. Plant extracts, such as cyclamen, impart additional properties - mucolytic and mild decongestant.
3. Combined preparations (oil in combination with a vasoconstrictor component). Among them are Evkazolin, Doctor Theiss Nazolin and others.
4. Drops based on seawater - Aqua Maris, Salin, etc. - a fairly weak remedy in the fight against sinusitis, but they can be used as an auxiliary therapy.

In addition to drops, for sinusitis, rinsing of the nasal passages with antiseptic solutions is recommended. For example, a solution of Dioxidin (1%) is used for a nasal shower with sinusitis, using a syringe without a needle or a small pear. In this case, the solution flowing down the pharynx should be spit out - the ingress of Dioxidine into the stomach is undesirable. Antiseptics Miramistin and Furacillin are used in a similar way.

Doing inhalation, drinking hot drinks and warming the nasal area with acute sinusitis is strictly contraindicated.

When is surgery required?

With a timely visit to a doctor and careful adherence to the prescribed treatment, sinusitis responds well to drug treatment. However, it cannot be guaranteed that it is possible to cure sinusitis without surgery in 100% of cases. First of all, this applies to patients with impaired drainage of the maxillary sinuses. For example, if a person has a deviated nasal septum, the outflow of mucus from the sinus will be incomplete, and pus will accumulate despite taking too much medication.

The same thing happens if the orifice of the sinus is blocked by a polyp or cyst. In such cases, the doctor recommends a puncture of the maxillary sinus. This is a small operation in which the bony wall of the inflamed sinus is pierced with a special needle. Pus comes out through the hole formed. Next, the doctor rinses the sinus cavity with an antiseptic and injects an antibiotic directly into it. If multiple washes are required, a catheter (a flexible tube through which an additional antibiotic will be injected) is inserted into the sinus.

Also, the operation has to be resorted to in advanced cases of sinusitis, if the doctor sees on the X-ray that the sinus (or sinuses) are filled with a large amount of pus. If the patient is in serious condition, it is better not to give up the operation - as soon as the pus comes out, the body temperature will drop, and the acute headache will pass. Follow-up antibiotic treatment will help to quickly fight the infection and achieve complete recovery.