Today sinusitis is a very common disease. What to do when it was discovered by one of the family members?
Let's try to understand whether sinusitis is contagious for children and other people around.
What is a disease?
Sinusitis is an inflammation of the mucous membrane (sometimes the bone walls) of the maxillary (maxillary) sinus. The disease is a form of sinusitis. It can occur both independently and in combination with inflammatory processes in other paranasal sinuses.
Is sinusitis contagious (and sinusitis in particular)? Let's get it right.
Causes of the disease
Sinusitis is usually accompanied by inflammatory processes and edema, which prevents the normal discharge of mucus from the maxillary sinuses. Several factors can contribute to this process. Depending on this, the contagiousness and safety of the disease for others will also change.
1. Infection. This can happen both from the external environment (in contact with patients), and from the body itself (due to inflammatory processes in the nasopharynx). Often, the disease is a complication of rhinitis, pharyngitis or tonsillitis. There is also the so-called odontogenic method of infection. It provides for the inflammation of the maxillary sinuses as a result of the penetration of microorganisms into them from the root of a diseased tooth. Is sinusitis of this species contagious? Only when an infection gets into the body by airborne droplets and the subsequent occurrence of complications that lead to inflammation of the maxillary sinus mucosa.
2. The presence of allergies. At a time when the allergen enters the maxillary sinus, aseptic inflammation begins to develop, which is accompanied by the appearance of edema. As a result, the normal outflow of mucus is disrupted and the best conditions are created for the reproduction of bacteria and viruses. As a result of this, allergic sinusitis can also be complicated by an infectious one. Is sinusitis that develops against the background of an allergy contagious? The answer is no. In the same way as the allergy itself is not contagious.
3. Medicines. Frequent use of vasoconstrictors can cause mucosal atrophy and, as a result, the development of chronic inflammation. Therefore, do not get too carried away with such drugs. Is sinusitis caused by medication contagious? No. Because it arose not because of the effects of infection, but as a result of the formed characteristics of the body.
4. The presence of a predisposition of the body. If the body is completely healthy, its immune system kills all harmful infections and prevents the further development of inflammatory processes. But due to a decrease in general or local immunity, mucus outflow may be impaired, as a result of which the possibility of sinusitis increases several times. Also, hypothermia can play a large role in the development of the disease. Is sinusitis of this species contagious? It all depends on the causes of the disease. For example, if it was caused by curving the nasal septum, then such a disease will not bring harm to others. But the infections that arose after hypothermia can be easily transmitted to another person.
Symptoms of sinusitis
Symptoms may vary depending on the severity of the disease. But still there are some common symptoms, such as fatigue, weakness, general malaise, pain in the forehead and nose, lacrimation, loss of smell, pressure in the nose (increases with bending forward), the appearance of edema and swelling of the face, pain when turning head, nasal discharge (have an unpleasant odor).
Prevention of sinusitis
The main prevention of the disease is to follow simple rules that will help prevent infection from entering the body.
Firstly, it is necessary to dress according to the weather and in no case to avoid hypothermia.
Secondly, it is necessary to strengthen the immune system, start playing sports and stop smoking, which irritates the mucous membranes.
The third point is a timely visit to the dentist and dental treatment.
Well, the last thing is to pay special attention to your health, in particular during periods of outbreaks of infectious and viral diseases. If nasal congestion does not go away for a long time, you must make an appointment with a doctor to rule out or confirm the presence of sinusitis or other inflammatory processes.
Is sinusitis contagious for pregnant women, children and others
We turn to the answer to the question that interested us at the very beginning of the article. Is sinusitis contagious for others? So, sinusitis itself as a disease is not contagious. But infections and viruses can easily be transmitted to a healthy person and provoke inflammatory processes and edema.
So we know whether sinusitis is contagious, as well as the symptoms and prevention of the disease. Be healthy!