Antibiotics Do Not Help Cure Adult Sinus Infections
March 16th, 2008 | by admin |
March 16 2008 - Results of a new study find that prescribing antibiotics for adults with sinus infections is a waste of time as they do not help cure them.
According to the study, it is very difficult for doctors to tell which types of sinus infections can be treated via antibiotics and which can not.
“Antibiotics offer little benefit for patients with acute rhinosinusitis-like complaints,” wrote the research team led by Dr. Jim Young of University Hospital Basel, Switzerland. “Antibiotics are not justified even if a patient reports symptoms for longer than 7-10 days,” they added in the March 15 issue ofThe Lancet.
The researchers state that due to the growing problem of antibiotic drug resistance, that doctors should just stop prescribing them to people with sinus infections.
Antibiotics are only able to fight bacterial infections they note, not viral infections.
“This study should not convey the message that antibiotics are not indicated for all patients with sinusitis,” Dr. Jordan S. Josephson, of Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, said in a statement.
