healthcare

Plain x-ray showing opacification of right maxillary sinus Patients who undergo radiotherapy for nasopharyngeal carcinoma tend to suffer from sinusitis because irradiation causes damage to sinonasal tissue. There is very little information about the organisms causing sinusitis after radiation therapy. Two recent studies from China provided important information about the unique microbiology of sinusitis in these patients. Huang et al ( Am J Rhinol.   2007 ) endoscopically obtained specimens from 25 patients with acute sinusitis that developed sinusitis after irradiation therapy. Staphylococcus aureus comprised 42% and Gram-negative bacilli 36%  of all aerobic isolates. The main anaer obic isolates were Peptostreptococcus and Veillonella spp . Polymicrobial infections and beta-lactamase-producing pathogens were highly prevalent. A study by Deng and Tang ( Eur. Arch.Otolaryngolog, 2009) compared the bacteriology of chronic maxillary sinusitis that developed after radiat...

Many different treatment options for chronic sinusitis (CS) exist but questions remain regarding the best options. While oral and intravenous antimicrobial therapies have traditionally been prescribed to manage CS, topical administration of these agents has gained increasing popularity over the past few years. Topical antimicrobials have the advantage of local delivery to the sinonasal mucosa and minimize the systemic effects seen with systemic agents. This is especially important in treatment of biofilms where higher concentrations of antibiotics are usually required. Topical antibiotic delivery devices to date have included nasal sprays, irrigations, and nebulizers. Nasal spraying of topical antibiotics are not believed to be very effective. This is supported by studies that have shown that the majority of deposition occurs only in the anterior part of the nasal cavity. In addition, the nasal sprays rely on mucociliary clearance to transport the drug from the anterior to the post...

Smoking is one of the most important causes of head and neck cancer . Another important untoward result of active and second hand smoke exposure is the increased risk of respiratory bacterial infecion.  These include acute and chronic sinusitis , ear infections , bronchitis and pneumonia. Recent studies we and others did show that smokers harbor more pathogenic bacteria that are also resistant to antibiotics, can be a source of spread of these bacteria to others (including their children) , and when smokers get respiratory infections treating them may be more difficult than treating non-smokers. In a  recent study w e evaluated the microbiology of sinus aspirates of smokers and nonsmokers with acute (244 patients,   87 smokers and 157 nonsmokers   ) and chronic (214 patients ,  84 smokers and 130 nonsmokers ) maxillary   sinusitis .  We found that sinusitis in smokers is more often caused by antibiotic resistant bacteria including methicillin resistan...