Chronic Sinusitis San Antonio |Allergy

Allergy and recurrent sinus infection may be a cause of chronic sinusitis San Antonio. If chronic sinusitis San Antonio is suspected, your doctor most likely will refer you to an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) physician (an otolaryngology specialist). The ENT physician uses several methods to help screen for chronic sinusitis: visual inspection, nasal endoscopy, CT scan, or nasal and sinus cultures.  After diagnosing chronic sinusitis and identifying a possible cause, your ENT will often begin with medical management.

Medical management of chronic sinusitis may include:

• Decongestants

• Nasal steroids

• Antibiotics

• Mucus thinning drugs

• Oral steroids

When medical therapy fails, chronic sinusitis San Antonio patients may need to be evaluated for surgical therapy. A CT scan may be ordered to evaluate which sinuses are prone to infection and inflammation. In addition, nasal endoscopy in the clinic allows the ENT surgeon to evaluate where the likely cause of sinus obstruction is causing chronic sinusitis San Antonio.

The evaluation for chronic sinusitis San Antonio is discussed in In office sinuplasty versus sinus surgery video with Dr. Jose Barrera, MD.

Healthcare professionals often find it difficult to treat the majority of chronic sinusitis sufferers with medication. In fact, it is estimated that up to 60 percent of chronic sinusitis sufferers are not successfully treated with medication. Patients who do not respond well to medications become candidates for conventional sinus surgery, which is known as functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS).

Since the 1980s, FESS has been the standard of care for sinus surgery. FESS aims to clear blocked sinuses and restore normal sinus drainage by removing bone and tissue to enlarge the sinus opening, which may lead to pain, scarring and bleeding.

However, conventional sinus surgery no longer has to be the only option for chronic sinusitis San Antonio patients who are not responding well to medications.  Balloon Sinuplasty™ is a breakthrough procedure that relieves the pain and pressure associated with chronic sinusitis. To learn more about chronic sinusitis, visit the American Academy of Otolaryngology‐Head and Neck Surgery (www.entnet.org). For more information about Balloon Sinuplasty, visit www.balloonsinuplasty.com