When are antibiotics needed for acute respiratory tract infections?

I think a lot of us do not like to take medications. Whenever, we are sick, we are not sure if we should see a doctor. This is because our immune system can help us overcome infections when our body is strong. Even doctors, can be in a dilemma as when antibiotics should be prescribed for their patients.

This interesting article touches on the various types of acute respiratory infections and excerpts are reproduced below:

COMMON RESPIRATORY TRACT INFECTIONS

The most common viral ARI is an upper respiratory tract infection (URI), also known as the common cold. Most URIs are caused by viruses, with rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus, coronavirus, adenovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, and influenza virus accounting for most cases.

Influenza is a systemic illness that involves the upper respiratory tract and should be differentiated from other ARIs, particularly during the months when the influenza virus is circulating. Influenza in adults is differentiated by acute onset, significant fever, and marked myalgias. Rapid antigen tests are available for diagnosing influenza, and antiviral therapy may be appropriate for certain patients.

Antibiotic treatment does not improve resolution of influenza infections or prevent complications. Only a small proportion of URIs become complicated by bacterial sinusitis or pneumonia; in these few cases, antibiotics may be useful. Most cases of uncomplicated URI resolve spontaneously within 1 to 2 weeks and require no treatment.

Acute sinusitis

Obstruction of the sinus ostia after a URI may result in rhinosinusitis or acute sinusitis. Bacterial and viral rhinosinusitis are difficult to differentiate clinically, and overdiagnosis of acute bacterial rhinosinusitis is common. The presence of yellow or green purulent secretions from the nares or throat, by itself, does not differentiate between a bacterial and a viral infection.

Generally, the diagnosis of acute bacterial sinusitis in adults should be reserved for patients who have symptoms for 7 days or longer, purulent nasal secretions, and maxillary facial or tooth pain. Symptomatic therapy is the preferred initial management for mild cases; the most narrow-spectrum antibiotic active against the likely pathogens, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae, should be prescribed for patients with severe disease regardless of duration.

The dilemma in the treatment of URIs and sinusitis is the lack of a simple and accurate diagnostic test that reliably identifies rhinosinusitis; therefore, a clinical diagnosis is uncertain.

Pharyngitis

Many office visits to primary care providers are for pharyngitis. Viruses are the most common cause of acute pharyngitis, and the condition should be managed with supportive therapy that includes analgesics, antipyretics, and gargle.11 Group A streptococci (GAS) cause 15% to 30% of cases of acute pharyngitis in pediatric patients and 5% to 10% of cases in adults.

Patients infected with GAS, and a few other uncommon bacteria, will benefit from antibiotic therapy; therefore, the clinical goal is to identify those patients with a high probability of GAS infection. The most reliable indicators are fever, tonsillar exudates, tender anterior cervical lymphadenopathy, and absence of a cough.

Patients with two or more of these features (referred to as the Centor criteria) are candidates for antigen testing or culture; patients with fewer than than two criteria do not need to be tested as they are less likely to be infected with GAS. Clinicians may choose to treat patients with at least three of the four clinical criteria empirically with antibiotics. Penicillin is the treatment of choice for pharyngitis caused by a GAS infection.

Acute bronchitis

This ARI manifests as a cough with or without sputum production and lasts for up to 3 weeks. Chest radiography findings are normal. Respiratory viruses are the cause of most cases of uncomplicated acute bronchitis; however, pneumonia must be considered in the differential diagnosis when patients present with an acute cough illness.

Signs of pneumonia include fever, cough, tachypnea, tachycardia, and evidence of consolidation on chest auscultation. The presence of purulent sputum is not predictive of bacterial infection. Patients with uncomplicated bronchitis may benefit from beta-agonist inhalers and antitussives. Acute bronchitis, like other ARIs, usually does not require antibiotic therapy.

Many people have had good sinus health once they adopted nasal irrigation. Nasal irrigation with a neti pot can help prevent one from catching the common cold and reduce the incidents of catching viral influenza.

For more information, visit Sinus Infection Help.

Medical procedure for recurring sinus infection sufferers

Mike Snider has been suffering from chronic sinus infection for a while and, in his article, he shares his experience about the balloon sinuplasty procedure he went through.

Excerpts from his article as follows:

Time for sinus surgery

I, along with about 14% of the U.S. population, or 37 million Americans, had chronic sinusitis, inflammation of the linings of the sinuses bad enough to block the drainage of mucus into the nose.

My path to surgery involved more than a decade of on-again, off-again congestion, pressure, trouble breathing and fatigue. Over the years, any time I flew in an airplane I was likely to develop a sinus infection.

Colds and flu could also cause them. Despite preventive measures — nasal steroid sprays, allergy shots and twice-daily sinus rinses — I regularly got infections that required antibiotics to subdue.
At their worst, my symptoms affected my work and my outside activities. Sometimes I couldn't sleep and often didn't have the energy to exercise.

I sought out numerous doctors and had several CT scans. One doctor attributed my face pain to migraines, and another surgeon suggested that I wait until my case became unbearable, as corrective surgery had no guarantees.

New way to open nasal passages

Last summer, I got a sinus infection that lasted for four months despite aggressive treatment of steroids and antibiotics. During the treatment, my allergy doctor referred me to a different sinus surgeon who had been doing a new procedure called balloon sinuplasty, which uses a small, flexible balloon catheter to open nasal passages.
"It is the evolution of the minimally invasive sinus surgery. So instead of actually cutting or removing tissue or bone, you are expanding a small balloon in the opening (of the sinuses)," says ear, nose and throat surgeon Jack Williams, "much like they do to open up a partially clogged artery."

In my initial examination, Williams said that my sinuses were swollen shut with trapped fluid in the frontal sinuses. Having performed more than 100 balloon procedures, he considered me a good candidate, but he also planned to correct a crooked septum as part of the surgery.

Each year, about 500,000 patients undergo the more traditional functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS), in which a surgeon removes bone and tissue. I had been scared off those by horror stories of painful recoveries and repeat surgeries.
Williams described how balloon sinuplasty induces very little or no scar tissue and heals much better. "It's much less uncomfortable and takes a day or two recovery time."

Mike Snider is someone who is predisposed to getting recurring sinus infection. This is because he suffers from chronic nasal congestion as a result of the physical structure of his nose, a deviated septum and also very narrow nasal passages.

If you do not wish to go through sinus surgery, then one of the best home remedy for sinus infection is to perform nasal irrigation daily using a neti pot. For more information, please visit Sinus Infection Help.

A cautionary note to allergy sufferers with regards to self-diagnosis and medication

Dr. Sami Bahna, Chief of Allergy & Immunology at LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport, in recent article, mentioned that many people are resorting to self-diagnosis and medication for their allergies.

Excerpts from her article is as follows:

[ Dr. Bahna says it certainly brings more people into his clinic, there are still many more who self-diagnose the symptoms they're suffering, and that can lead to trouble.

"Allergies are the most commonly mis-diagnosed and the most commonly self-diagnosed." It's when patients try to self-treat that they might be missing out on a simpler approach - or making things worse all around. "Medications are well known, not just to any physicians, but even the patients know the names of the nasal sprays and the antihistamines and the eye drops," says Dr. Hanoi, who suggests a visit to the doctor is still the smartest approach - even when advice and experience from friends and family abounds, "Their knowledge alone is not the issue It's how to tune it up for that particular person, and sometimes, a little adjustment like that makes a BIG difference!"

Besides that, Dr. Bhana says some over-the-counter medications can actually make your allergy symptoms worse. "The over the counter nasal sprays are not good. it will relieve the obstruction, the blockage of the nose quickly - pleases the patient - and rebounds again like a rubber band!" While those saline nasal decongestants are fine in small doses at bedtime so you can sleep, they're not good for constant daytime use. Dr. Bhana says that can lead to allergy sufferers using them more often, which only end up increasing the symptoms.

Gone improperly treated for too long, all that drainage can turn into a sinus infection. You'll know it when the mucus becomes discolored. That means you have a secondary infection and you need to see your doctor and get an antibiotic to go along with your decongestant.

Here are some tips for surviving Spring allergy season:

1.Try to keep doors and windows closed.
2.Use the air conditioning in your house and car.
3.Stay inside when you can, especially on dry windy days.
4.Use a dehumidifier
5.Use high efficiency particulate air or HEPA filter in your bedroom
6.Avoid mowing the lawn or raking leaves.]

Effective allergy and sinus relief can take the form of over-the-counter medications and some proven sinus infection home remedies can work just a well too!

Usually, if you suffer from allergies often, it is highly possible that you get clogged ears regularly which may lead to Eustachian Tube Dysfunction.

For more information on sinus infection treatment and medical procedures for sinus infection such as balloon sinuplasty, please visit Sinus Infection Help.

Should antibiotics be the first choice in treating sinus infection?

Dr. Helen Minciotti wrote an interesting article about the use of antibiotics in treating sinus infection.

Below are excerpts from her article:

" Is there a time when upper respiratory infections do deserve treatment with antibiotics? Yes, under certain circumstances. Sinuses are cavities in the skull - basically, holes in your head - that become inflamed during colds. When this inflammation persists, sinuses can become infected with bacteria. If a cold lasts several weeks and a child shows no signs of improving on his own, he can have a true sinus infection.

Specialists at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center report that the three factors that most often predispose a child to bacterial sinusitis include these viral URIs, allergic inflammation and exposure to smoke. The Cincinnati researchers note that X-rays are generally not used to diagnose sinusitis, as it's really a clinical diagnosis, based on a child's presenting signs and symptoms. Major diagnostic criteria are: URI symptoms lasting more than 10 days without improvement, nasal congestion and discharge of any type - color, though parents often worry about the dreaded green "snot," is not considered diagnostic - and a cough which is usually worse at night. Other possible features of sinusitis are a low-grade fever, ear or throat pain, fatigue, bad breath, intermittent facial puffiness and face or tooth pain.

The bugs that cause sinusitis in children tend to be the same organisms that cause ear infections. Treatment, therefore, is generally the same, with the usual first line antibiotic of choice being high-dose amoxicillin for a 10- to 14-day course. Though a child will not be cured after 72 hours of antibiotics, parents should notify the doctor if they see no signs of improvement during this initial treatment period.

Saline rinses help some pediatric patients, while acetaminophen or ibuprofen can take the edge off sinus headaches and facial pain. The use of a cool mist vaporizer or humidifier in the bedroom can also make nighttime a little more comfortable for young sinus sufferers."

Being a chronic sinus infection sufferer for quite some years myself, sinus pain can be unbearable. When it comes to this stage, sinus infection treatment using antibiotics is really necessary in my opinion.

For more information on preventing sinus infection and whether sinus infections are contagious, please visit Sinus Infection Help.

Are you coughing and sneezing? It may be allergies

For many of you who are suffering from sinus infection or chronic nasal congestion, Dr. Rima Sanka of Advanced Allergy and Asthma Care in Pinellas Park says this season seems to be more severe.

In a recent news article, the Pinellas Park allergist says the climate and environment help dictate the allergy season. She says a colder than usual winter is partly to blame for more cases of allergy sufferers.

With symptoms like scratchy throat, sneezing and congestion, patients often confuse allergies with the common cold.

Dr. Sanka says, "People who suffer from allergies often have chronic recurring infections, like sinus infection, bronchitis infections, which can be more frequent and more severe."

And left untreated, experts say allergies can turn into asthma. "The most common type of asthma is allergic asthma. Allergies gone untreated, there's shortness of breath, chronic cough, night time cough, difficulty in breathing or wheezing," describes Dr. Sanka.

She says at the very least, allergies impact the quality of your daily life, from making you feel tired, to impacting your sleep, work performance and attention.

For more information on sinusitis or home remedy for sinus infection, go to the Sinus Infection Help.

Help For Sinus Infection

The above website contains information gathered and researched on Sinus Infection issues. It covers topics like:

1. Understanding Sinus Infection.

2. The causes of Sinus Infection

3. Sinus Infection Symptoms

4. Sinus Infection Treatment

5. Preventing Sinus Infection

6. Natural Home Remedies

7. Related Illnesses

Under Home Remedies, there is a detailed write-up about Nasal Irrigation. This is the most effective drug-free alternative for the treatment and prevention of Sinus Infection.

I hope this website can provide most of the answers you seek regarding this debilitating condition.

Mold Allergy-Symptoms and Prevention

Mold allergy is less common than other allergies. Out of the thousands of types of mold in the environment, only a few dozen can cause allergic reactions that pose a threat to human health. Mold grows in all kinds of climates and thrives both indoors and outdoors; consequently, mold allergy does not have a defined season like pollen allergy does. When microscopic mold spores are inhaled, they often cause allergic rhinitis (hay fever symptoms) by irritating the lining of the nose. They sometimes reach the lungs and cause asthma.
Symptoms of mold allergy include:
Sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion
Chronic cough
Itchy, watery and red eyes
Skin rashes and hives
Sinus headaches
Reduced lung capacity and difficulty breathing
Certain foods that are processed with mushrooms and dried fruits can aggravate the symptoms of mold allergy. Foods that contain ingredients such as yeast, soy sauce, or vinegar can also upset the body's system and worsen the symptoms.
Who is at greater risk?People can develop a mold allergy if they or other family members have allergic reactions to substances such as pollen, dust mites or animal dander. However, similar to other allergies, suffering from one type of mold does not necessarily lead to being allergic to all molds since mold spores vary.
People whose occupations regularly expose them to mold are at a greater risk of developing allergies. Farmers, dairymen, loggers, bakers, mill workers, carpenters, greenhouse employees, winemakers and furniture repair persons are often subject to allergic reactions.
PreventionThe chances of getting a mold allergy can be significantly reduced by following these tips:
Wear a dust mask when cutting grass, digging around plants, picking up leaves and disturbing plant materials
Reduce the humidity indoors to prevent fungi from growing
Check for mold in your home
TestingThe allergy skin test is the most accurate way of discovering if one is allergic to mold. An alternative is the allergy blood test, which produces the same results as a skin test. The allergy blood test is better suited for people with very sensitive skin, or for people who take medication that may cause inaccurate skin test results.
Treatments
MedicationMedication for mold related allergy is the same as that of pollens and other inhalant allergies, which consists of bronchodilators, antihistamines,
Immunotherapy A series of injections given in gradually increasing dosages can be administered to help treat mold allergy. The injections include extracts of various allergens to help the body develop a tolerance to that allergen.
Gary Martin is a freelance writer specializing in health and allergy research for the Mold Removal Unit - http://www.moldunit.com/ website.
Mold allergy is less common than other allergies. Out of the thousands of types of mold in the environment, only a few dozen can cause allergic reactions that pose a threat to human health. Mold grows in all kinds of climates and thrives both indoors and outdoors; consequently, mold allergy does not have a defined season like pollen allergy does. When microscopic mold spores are inhaled, they often cause allergic rhinitis (hay fever symptoms) by irritating the lining of the nose. They sometimes reach the lungs and cause asthma.
Symptoms of mold allergy include:
Sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion
Chronic cough
Itchy, watery and red eyes
Skin rashes and hives
Sinus headaches
Reduced lung capacity and difficulty breathing
Certain foods that are processed with mushrooms and dried fruits can aggravate the symptoms of mold allergy. Foods that contain ingredients such as yeast, soy sauce, or vinegar can also upset the body's system and worsen the symptoms.
Who is at greater risk?People can develop a mold allergy if they or other family members have allergic reactions to substances such as pollen, dust mites or animal dander. However, similar to other allergies, suffering from one type of mold does not necessarily lead to being allergic to all molds since mold spores vary.
People whose occupations regularly expose them to mold are at a greater risk of developing allergies. Farmers, dairymen, loggers, bakers, mill workers, carpenters, greenhouse employees, winemakers and furniture repair persons are often subject to allergic reactions.
PreventionThe chances of getting a mold allergy can be significantly reduced by following these tips:
Wear a dust mask when cutting grass, digging around plants, picking up leaves and disturbing plant materials
Reduce the humidity indoors to prevent fungi from growing
Check for mold in your home
TestingThe allergy skin test is the most accurate way of discovering if one is allergic to mold. An alternative is the allergy blood test, which produces the same results as a skin test. The allergy blood test is better suited for people with very sensitive skin, or for people who take medication that may cause inaccurate skin test results.
Treatments
MedicationMedication for mold related allergy is the same as that of pollens and other inhalant allergies, which consists of bronchodilators, antihistamines,
Immunotherapy A series of injections given in gradually increasing dosages can be administered to help treat mold allergy. The injections include extracts of various allergens to help the body develop a tolerance to that allergen.
Gary Martin is a freelance writer specializing in health and allergy research for the Mold Removal Unit - http://www.moldunit.com website.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=G_Martin
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