Effective Remedies for Sinusitis

The remedies for sinusitis well and truly depend on the form and seriousness of the case. Acute sinusitis which usually lasts for couple of weeks can be treated easily through herbal therapies or antibiotics. Remedies for chronic sinusitis on the other hand can be much more involved. Chronic sinusitis is a persistent condition and hence requires some investigation, research and scanning before doctors can decide upon a remedy. Whatever the type of sinusitis, the bottom line of the situation lies in the fact that the narrow sinus cavities and the nasal passage are clogged which make it impossible for the relatively thicker mucus secreted in such situations to flow out causing its stagnation. This becomes the breeding ground for bacteria and harmful fungi.

In acute sinusitis one tries to cure the symptoms and relief the pain for the patient. That is sufficient because the affects are not expected to come back as it is a temporary infection. This means one can cure the symptoms using any of innumerable ways to clear the clogging.

Mucocilliary clearance as the natural process of removing mucus is called, doesn't happen effectively in sinusitis. This could be because the cilia that helps to push the mucus is immobile because of infection, or there is simply no space for the mucus to flow through the nasal folds or turbinates or the sinus cavity which is very small has been blocked.

A very good remedy for opening up the nasal passages is sending in warm vapors from a bowl that has steaming water. Inhaling from it by covering the head in a blanket ensures that the warm vapors enter inside the nose and make the mucus more mobile. Once the clogging opens up a bit, one can blow the nose couple of times to get rid of all the clogged mucus. In some cases, clogged mucus gives rise to bacteria growth which must be treated.

Nasal sprays are very effective against inflammation and bacterial infection. These nasal sprays have a lot of medicinal properties. They are anti-allergic, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and anti-septic which pretty much suffices to cure the infection causing sinusitis. The decongestant and anti-inflammatory properties also help heal the mucous lining which is swollen because of bacterial attack thus increasing the secretion of mucus. Anti- microbial sprays are also used to kill the bacteria and virus and make the mucus discharge free flowing. These contain chemicals that inhibit the growth of bacteria secreted acids that harm the mucus linings.

The remedies for sinusitis could also be aimed at long term effects. Chronic sinusitis as it is called, is caused due to the same reasons as acute sinusitis. However, the root cause is something different. A crooked cartilage inside the nasal passage, a delicate obstruction in the path of the mucus, an overgrown tissue structure in the nasal linings or increased allergic activity inside the sinus cavities could all be causes of a persistent sinusitis problem. The remedy for this problem is two pronged. The first step consists of identifying the root cause. This could be done by endoscopic surgery, MRI scan or CT scan that identifies what the problem is. The seriousness of the problem must then be assessed followed by a surgical treatment. The choice could be balloon sinuplasty for widening the nasal cavity, shaving of the polyps, fixing the crooked cartilage or removing the obstruction to nasal path completely. Most of these surgeries are relatively harmless and remedy the sinusitis problems issue for good.