4 ms·

I used to have an incurable sinus infection that plagued me every winter. Antibiotics were worthless. Then, after X-rays confirmed my maxillary sinuses were f

I used to have an incurable sinus infection that plagued me every winter. Antibiotics were worthless. Then, after X-rays confirmed my maxillary sinuses were filled to the brim with crud and doctors wanted to cut out large swaths of my sinuses, I decided to hang upside down on my personal quack theory that it might let them drain. To my somewhat surprise, every day I did this an unholy brew of dark brown mucus and blood would drain out of my nose after a few minutes. A couple weeks later the crud dissipated and so did the sinus infection. I haven't had a serious infection of more than a few days since 2011. What's my point? Keep an open mind here. Traditional medicine wasn't the answer here. Homeopathy is nonsense, but there are occasional bits of truth to mine from alternative approaches.

sp332 12y ago
Since most sinus infections are viral, antibiotics probably did nothing at all.
- TheSpiceIsLife 12y ago
  Correct. Northward of 90% of all URTIs (Upper Respiratory Tract Infections) are caused by viruses and never develop secondary bacterial infections. [1] If you have a bacterial upper respiratory tract infection you usually feel much less well than when the average viral infection. The usually route of antibiotics appearing to work is that a course of antibiotics is usually 10 days, by which time you're mostly over the viral infection anyway. 1.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3098742/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3098742/
greglindahl 12y ago
Sounds like both you and traditional medicine were theorizing about the same cause -- you tried a cure that has to be repeated if the situation develops again, while they were aiming at something that might be a permanent fix. Why did you conclude that traditional medicine wasn't the answer?
- LogicFailsMe 12y ago
  Except if you read the experiences of people who get the sinus surgery, it's not a permanent fix and it can go horribly wrong. It just buys one a few years of relief while the creeping crud finds another way to make your life miserable again. You're right that both approaches assumed there was a mechanical/stuctural fix to the problem. It's just that mine was less invasive and IMO the correct first step. As for the root cause being viral versus bacterial, I suspect it was pneumonia bacteria. There was a frequent peroxide smell to my mucus and said bacteria were cultured repeatedly from the crud.
specialist 12y ago
I feels ya. Surgery sucked. I wish someone had told me about netty pots, nebulizers, xylitol nasal spray, whatever preventative things to try first. Pre surgery, I was in so much pain, I would have tried anything. Post surgery, for months, to clear things out, I would lie down face up hanging my head over the edge of the bed, fill up my nostrils with the saline concoction (ABX, steroids), and let it marinate. For as long as I could handle it. Worked pretty good. It's astonishing how much goop the human head can store up there.

sp332 12y ago

Since most sinus infections are viral, antibiotics probably did nothing at all.

TheSpiceIsLife 12y ago
Correct. Northward of 90% of all URTIs (Upper Respiratory Tract Infections) are caused by viruses and never develop secondary bacterial infections. [1] If you have a bacterial upper respiratory tract infection you usually feel much less well than when the average viral infection. The usually route of antibiotics appearing to work is that a course of antibiotics is usually 10 days, by which time you're mostly over the viral infection anyway. 1.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3098742/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3098742/

greglindahl 12y ago

Sounds like both you and traditional medicine were theorizing about the same cause -- you tried a cure that has to be repeated if the situation develops again, while they were aiming at something that might be a permanent fix. Why did you conclude that traditional medicine wasn't the answer?

LogicFailsMe 12y ago
Except if you read the experiences of people who get the sinus surgery, it's not a permanent fix and it can go horribly wrong. It just buys one a few years of relief while the creeping crud finds another way to make your life miserable again. You're right that both approaches assumed there was a mechanical/stuctural fix to the problem. It's just that mine was less invasive and IMO the correct first step. As for the root cause being viral versus bacterial, I suspect it was pneumonia bacteria. There was a frequent peroxide smell to my mucus and said bacteria were cultured repeatedly from the crud.

specialist 12y ago

I feels ya. Surgery sucked. I wish someone had told me about netty pots, nebulizers, xylitol nasal spray, whatever preventative things to try first. Pre surgery, I was in so much pain, I would have tried anything. Post surgery, for months, to clear things out, I would lie down face up hanging my head over the edge of the bed, fill up my nostrils with the saline concoction (ABX, steroids), and let it marinate. For as long as I could handle it. Worked pretty good. It's astonishing how much goop the human head can store up there.