Dont Run For The Antibiotics
When you get sick at an inconvenient time, it can be tempting to rush to urgent care and demand a microbe-murdering wonder drug. But please, please, please dont try to get antibiotics just because youre feeling under the weather.
Chances are good you have a cold or flu, which cant be treated with antibiotics. Antibiotics kill bacteria, but colds and flus are caused by viruses.
If youre really worried that you might have a sinus infection or strep throat seek a doctors advice. But if your symptoms feel like a typical cold or flu, give yourself a few days to fight it off. Antibiotics wont help, and theyll throw all the microbes in your gut out of whack. Do you really want to take a useless medication that gives you diarrhea all through the holiday festivities? I hope not.
How To Treat A Post
How you treat post-nasal drip depends on whats causing it. Antibiotics can clear up a bacterial infection, but if your post-nasal drip is caused by a virus, which wont respond to antibiotics, there are other things you can try. Antihistamines and decongestants can relieve symptoms associated with post-nasal drip caused by sinusitis and viral infections. Antihistamines like loratadine may be better options and are less likely to cause drowsiness. You can also use saline nasal sprays or a neti pot to flush mucus and bacteria out of your system.
Signs Its An Infection: Your Throat Is On Fire
Its normal to have an itchy, scratchy throat in conjunction with sniffles when you have a cold, but a severe sore throat can mean an infection. If you have a high fever with swollen lymph nodes and an intense soreness in your throat that comes on quickly, it may be a bacterial infection like strep. Another indicator that its not just a cold is if the severity of your sore throat lasts more than 48 hours. Along with very painful swallowing, other symptoms of strep are red, swollen tonsils with white patches and tiny red spots at the back of the roof of your mouth.
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Causes Of Eye Allergies
Substances in the air, such as pollen, grass pollen, ragweed pollen, pet dander, dust, smoke, perfumes, mold, and even cooking odors, irritate the eye and trigger the release of histamines to combat them. The histamines cause the eye to become red and watery and can increase the itchy feeling and the swelling.1
Eye allergies can be inherited. If both of your parents suffer from allergic conjunctivitis, your risk for inheriting the condition is greatly increased.1
Find Relief From Your Itchy Ears And Throat At Kaplan Sinus Relief
Whether youre wondering Why do my ears and throat itch? or Why do I have so much ear wax all of a sudden? your local ENT is one of the best resources for receiving treatment.
At Kaplan Sinus Relief, we have the experience necessary to properly diagnose your condition and find the right procedure for you. Give us a call today at 713-766-1818 or visit our request an appointment online.
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Sinus Infection Or Allergies
Sinusitis Symptoms , Allergies, and Common Cold are almost identical.
How can you tell which one is responsible for your misery?
Well, apparently a bacterial sinus infection lasts longer than the common cold. The mucus tends to thicken and discolor, and pressure and pain are involved in the horror story too.
Allergy Signs and Symptoms:
- Sneezing & stuffy or runny nostrils
- Clear or whitish nasal drip
- Itchy watery eyes
- Pain in the upper teeth
- Pressure or pain in upper cheeks, top of the nose, between eyes or forehead
- Stuffed nose, mucus is thick and yellow, greenish or grayish
- Symptoms last more than 10-14 days
But whatever it is, the following remedies can help either.
Complications Of An Untreated Sinus Infection
Most sinus infections will resolve in a week or two. However, there are rare cases of serious and potentially life-threatening complications that may arise. Knowing what the signs and symptoms of these complications can keep a complication from becoming a catastrophe.
The thin sinus walls share a border with the surrounding tissue including the eyes, brain and major nerves and blood vessels. A sinus infection can sometimes spread beyond the border of the sinuses. Read below about the potential rare consequences of an untreated sinus infection.
In rare situations, the failure to treat a sinus infection can lead to a serious complication.
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But Im Worried That I Have Bronchitis
Bronchitis is a term that means, literally, inflammation of the airways. This is most often due to a viral infection and often does not require antibiotics. Many times, an upper respiratory infection that starts in the sinuses does end up settling in the chest, which causes productive cough and chest congestion. We can thank gravity for this Everything gets pulled downward, and the lungs are downward from the sinuses, so all that drainage has to go somewhere This is when bronchitis occurs. However, this still does not necessarily require antibiotics. It does not mean that pneumonia is coming next. With proper medication to alleviate congestion and help with the cough, even bronchitis will go away on its own.
Dont Take Antibiotics For A Cold
Why? Because antibiotics wipe out the good bacteria in your gut. This is the healthy gut flora that keeps your immune system and digestive system functioning optimally. If youre taking antibiotics over a period of time, your immune response dampens, making your body more vulnerable to viruses and bacteria. The only time to take an antibiotic is when a doctor prescribed it for a particular bacterial infection. If you want to nip a cold in the bud, its best to let your body do it naturally. That said, if you do have to take an antibiotic, be sure to get yourself a high-quality probiotic like this one to build up the healthy gut bacteria.
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How To Heal A Sinus Infection In 2 Days
2020/03/19
I never understood the fuss about sinus infections until Ive experienced it first hand.
Its horrible.
The second round of antibiotics and no relief in sight.
Its not you, its me, I said to my antibiotics and decided to try home remedies for sinus infections, still shocked that I agreed to take antibiotics in the first place. I must have been truly desperate.
Two Days later my sinuses were clear.
No sinus pressure, no sinus headaches, and no congestion. I was thrilled.
In this post, I will share my personal 2-day-sinus-infection protocol with you, along with many more effective home remedies and practical information about causes, cures, and prevention of sinus infections.
Ready? Lets start.
Ive Had A Cough And A Sore Throat For 2 Days I Need An Antibiotic To Nip It In The Bud Before It Turns Into Pneumonia
Research has proven that more than 95% of upper respiratory illnesses are due to viruses which do NOT respond to antibiotics . Trying to nip a viral infection by treating it with antibiotics is like trying to prevent your car from running out of gas by refilling the engine oil. It makes no sense. It is fair to try an antibiotic if symptoms last more than a week, a patient has some sort of lowered immune system from cancer treatment or other illness or a patient has advanced COPD/emphysema which makes their lungs more susceptible to severe illness. However, medications to ease symptoms are more likely to make you feel better faster! Also, inappropriate use of antibiotics can cause other problems such as infectious diarrhea or resistance, so that when you actually need one, it may not work as well or at all!
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Are Sinus Infections Contagious Through Kissing
I wouldnt recommend kissing someone when you have a sinus infection. The actual sinus infection is not contagious but the underlying cause may be contagious, Dr. Varghese explains.
You can easily transfer the virus, bacteria, or fungi that caused your sinusitis to another person when you come into such close contact with them. Although that person may not develop a sinus infection, they can certainly become ill.
What About Antibiotics
You may have noticed we havent mentioned antibiotics. Most of the time, the common cold is caused by viruses. In fact, there are over 200 different varieties of viruses can cause the symptoms of a cold, but the most common are rhinoviruses. Simply put, antibiotics cannot kill viruses because viruses have different structures and replicate in a different way than bacteria. Antibiotics can only treat bacterial infections such as strep throat and urinary infections. They will not treat viruses, such as colds and the flu.
At EliteCare we know that your familys needs dont always fit into standard office hours. If youre lucky enough to get sick on the weekend, you dont have to wait until Monday to be treated. We stay open on weekends to make sure you and your family are well cared for. If youre not feeling well, come by and see us on Saturday from 8 AM-12 PM or on Sunday from 1 PM-4 PM.
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When You Can Run
If your cold is mild and you dont have much congestion, its usually safe to work out.
A good rule of thumb is to consider the location of your symptoms. When your symptoms are located above your neck, you may be able to exercise safely.
But its still a good idea to take it easy. This will help your immune system fight off the cold as you continue being physically active.
You can dial down your running routine by:
- jogging instead of running
- taking brisk walks instead of running
Do I Have Acute Sinusitis
If youre wondering, is acute sinusitis contagious? you need to determine if youre actually suffering from acute sinusitis, first. Spring can make it difficult to diagnose sinus-related ailments, since pollen and other allergens are especially abundant at that time of year.
Sinus infections and acute sinusitis typically cause some of these unique symptoms:
- Drainage of thick mucus, usually yellowish or greenish in color
- Nasal congestion that makes it difficult to breathe through your nose
- Pain and swelling in the cheeks, eyes, nose, and/or forehead
- Dental pain and jaw pain
- Slight cough from mucus build-up
If youre experiencing these symptoms for several days or more, you may have acute sinusitis.
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Can Sinusitis Make You Feel Ill
Sinusitis causes a lot of mucus production, and a person may find they are unable to clear the sinuses no matter how often they blow their nose. Fighting a sinus infection demands energy from the body, so it is common to feel fatigued. Some people feel exhausted because they cannot breathe easily or are in pain.
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Actually Take A Break
The simplest remedy is also the most effective, and probably the most disappointing. If you had time to rest, dammit, you wouldnt be Googling around for quick cold remedies.
But listen, friends: youve got to get some rest. Really.
Aside from the fact that depriving yourself of sleep is going to make you feel generally crappy anyway, your immune system does some of its best work while you snooze. If youre not getting enough shut-eye your body just isnt going to do as good of a job at fighting off infections. Period.
And if you wake up still feeling crummy, you should stay home from work if at all possible. One 2014 study found that a pathogen placed on a single doorknob could essentially infiltrate an entire office building within a matter of hours. Surfaces in the break room were particularly vulnerable to the spread of viruses.
If you absolutely must go into the workplace bring some hand sanitizer with you. You usually want to avoid killing off the microbes that live on your skin. But if youre exposing innocent bystanders to your cold or flu, the least you can do is give yourself a good Purell rubdown after any contact between your hands and your mucus-y bits.
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Teen Dies After Sinus Infection: How To Tell If You Have Complications
Imaging shows sinusitis of the maxillary sinus and the right meatus.
Yes, your sinuses are next to some pretty important parts of your body such as your eyes, skull, and brain. Yes, a sinus infection can occasionally spread to these areas and thus have more serious complications. And, yes, on rare occasions, these complications can be life threatening, like what reportedly happened in Michigan to a 13-year-old boy, who died after his sinus infection had apparently spread to his brain, according to Jason Duaine Hahn, writing for People.
The article in People related the tragic story of how an eighth-grader began having headaches and cold symptoms, which progressed to migraines and then to a swollen face with loss of muscle movement on the left side of his face and eventually to blood clots and strokes. As Hahn related, the teen eventually passed away from complications of the infection.
Indeed, this is a stark reminder of how fragile life can be and how seemingly simple health problems can quickly mushroom into much more complicated ones, even if you are young and otherwise healthy. However, this does not mean that you should freak out just because you have a sinus infection and begin popping antibiotics like they are chocolate-covered potato chips. Not only are antibiotics useless against viruses, which cause many sinus infections, but such medications can also select for antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which are much nastier and more difficult to treat.
Signs It Allergies: Sneezing
If you find yourself sneezing more every spring or fall, its because thats the most common time of year for seasonal allergies, also known as hay fever. The term is used to describe allergic reactions in the nose. A glaring sign that those sniffles are because of allergies as opposed to a common cold is sneezing in combination with a runny nose with thin, watery discharge.
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Prevention Of Seasonal Eye Allergies
If you suspect you will suffer from seasonal eye allergies this spring, you can begin protecting your eyes by eliminating exposure to the sources of irritation. If the fresh flowers and pollen affect you, avoid these triggers by staying indoors as much as possible. Use air conditioning and keep windows closed. Consider using special air filter units or add HEPA filters to your air conditioner and HEPA bags in your vacuum cleaner.
When you do go outside, try wearing sunglasses, goggles or eye shield to protect your eyes from the pollen. The best time to go outdoors is after a rain has settled the pollen. Avoid windy, dry days and early mornings when pollen count is at its highest. Listen to the weather reports that give pollen counts for the day. Wear a pollen mask outdoors.2
Frequently wash your hands and face to remove irritants before they are inadvertently passed onto your eyes. If youve been working outdoors, remove clothes and shower to remove allergens.2
Signs Its An Infection: Sinus Pain
While sinus pain with a cold is common, sometimes bacteria in blocked sinuses can lead to an infection known as bacterial sinusitis and might cause pain longer than the week of a typical cold. The sinuses are a connected system of hollow cavities in the skull located in your forehead, inside your cheekbones and behind the nose. If your sinuses are inflamed and swollen from nasal issues, you might experience an ache with a dull pressure in these areas.
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Treatment For Seasonal Eye Allergies
While there are over-the-counter medications, such as antihistamines, that can be taken, some of them can dry out the eye and not readily improve the eye discomfort you may be experiencing. Antihistamines with diphenhydramine, such as Benadryl or ChlorTrimeton can dry out the mouth and eyes. Try medications with cetirizine or levocetirizine, fexofenadine, loratadine or desloratadine that wont cause drowsiness or dry eyes.3
Artificial tears can quickly wash irritants from the eyes before histamines are triggered. They can also keep the eyes moist. Use according to directions on the label and no more than six times a day.4
Other eye drop options include: corticosteroid eye drops, antihistamine eye drops, or decongestant eye drops. These should be used as directed and under the supervision of your ophthalmologist.4
Finally, there are immunotherapy shots that may be prescribed to help with severe seasonal allergies. Ask your ophthalmologist if you are a good candidate for this treatment option.4
How To Nip Symptoms From Ragweed In The Bud
WICHITA FALLS, TX – As Texoma enters into the month of September, we’re also entering peak Ragweed season.
Ragweed is one of the most powerful pollinating plants this time of year, producing billions of grains in a single season. The plant is known to cause everything from sinus problems to ‘Hay Fever’, but those suffering allergy problems from the shrub can usually find a solution to their symptoms by visiting their local pharmacist.
“We’ve actually already seen quiet a few people come in complaining about various symptoms, whether it be runny nose, itchy watery eyes, stuffiness, anything like that. We’re already seeing that start up,” said Pharmacist Dr. Kayla Steinly.
According to Dr. Steinly, there are a wide variety of over the counter options for people looking to nip their sinus problems in the bud. “If the symptoms are really bad and they don’t feel like they have any relief with them, we can usually refer them to go check out what is going on with their doctor or they can even go in an see an allergist because some people do have allergies that are not handled by over the counter products,” said Dr. Steinly.
Over at the Clinics of North Texas, Family Medicine Dr. Micah Boyer said anytime you start having fevers, chills, sinus pressure, or pain behind the forehead, it may be more than just allergies and could possibly be like a sinus infection or something much more serious. Dr. Boyer warns Texomans to address early signs and symptoms as soon as they can.
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