Hello all. :wave:

This is a cross post from the headache board.

Since I was about 10 years old I have been having terrible sinus problems. When I was 12 I had surgery to remove a polyp from my left maxillary sinus when I was 12. Since then my sinus problems had been much much better. I would maybe get one or two infections a year, instead of 10 or 12 infections a year! So I was thinking that everything was going well. I'm 22 now, and have started having really bad sinus headaches again over the past few months. I have just begun student teaching in an elementary school, so I know that I am picking up all kinds of germs.

Here is the problem now. Since about December of last year, I have been getting sinus infections very frequently. Or possibly just one infection that never went away. In late December I saw my Ear Nose and Throat specialist who put me on the anti-biotic Levaquin for 10 days. It seemed to have worked. But then in the middle of January I got another infection. I saw my primary care physician (had an appointment with him for something else, so while I was there he looked in my sinuses). He gave me the anti-biotic Avelox for 10 days. That really didn't work. By that time my throat was starting to hurt really badly too. So, I went back to my PCP and he said that he didn't want to be the one to continue to treat me for this, because an ENT specialist would know better what to do. So I went back and saw my ENT. He ordered a sinus CT Scan and he cultured my nose and throat. Much to my surprise, there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING wrong with my sinuses! At least, nothing showed up on the scan. The only problem that they found is that I've got an impacted wisdom tooth up in my sinuses. But that has been there for years. So, the throat/nose culture came back and apparently I now have some form of Strep. I am now on 500mg of Ceftin twice a day for 5 days. Then if I still don't feel any better I have to go back and see the ENT dr again. I have also had a low grade fever (99.5-100) on and off for about the last month. I only started on the Ceftin yesterday, but it does seem that the fever is starting to go away.

I don't mean to gross anybody out, but I also have to tell you that I am constantly coughing up green, yellow, and sometimes brown mucus. I also have the same colors coming out of my nose! My nose is extremely congested and I am constantly dizzy and have a lot of pressure in and around my nose and above my eyes. I never knew that strep could cause all of this! My dr is a little difficult to understand because he speaks with an accent and is very soft spoken. He gave me the results of the culture over the phone, and I think I may have heard him say something about infected adenoids or strep in the back of my nose (if this is possible). But if I don't have any sinus problems (as proven by the scan), then what the heck is this all from? [img]http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/confused.gif[/img]

I am not currently taking any sort of oral anti-histamines or decongestants, because I can't. I have extremely severe dry eyes and could possibly develop an eye ulcer (already had one of those!) if I take anything that could potentially dry me out like an anti-histamine or decongestant. I may end up having to take one just to get rid of this once and for all, but I really really don't want to. I am using the nasal spray Astelin, 2 sprays in each nostril once a day, as well as a saline nasal spray several times a day and also a saline nasal gel to keep my nose moisturized so I don't get the nose bleeds that have become so common with me. (I sometimes wake up in the morning with a bloody nose!) I sleep with a warm air humidifier on in my bedroom because of the dry eye problem. It has done wonders for my eyes, but I am wondering if it has in any way harmed my sinuses due to the excess humidity. It is a germ free, mold free, dust free humidifier (it's got special absorption pads and a UV light to prevent the germs and mold). I also use an air purifier in the bedroom at night when I sleep, and I have allergy covers on all of my pillows and my mattress.

But I still have these persistant sinus headaches and all of this congestion! What do I do? If anyone has any suggestions for me, please help!

Thank you so much,
Elyse
[img]http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/heart.gif[/img]

Thanks for all the helpful advice. You seem very knowledgeable about all of this! I have been on Ceftin for about 3 days now, and I do seem to be feeling a little better. I don't think I have a fever anymore, and my throat and head do not seem to be as bad. Although, I am a student teacher and today I taught for the entire day, so this caused my throat to be quite soar by the end of the day. I am only going to be on the anti-biotic for 2 more days, which kinda concerns me because usually when somebody has strep, isn't the usual dose 7 days or longer? I can't keep taking anti-biotics because I have very bad stomach problems. But I do take acidophilus regularly to help with that, and my GI dr said that he would give me Flagyll if the Ceftin causes any problems. The problem with being on so many anti-biotics is that they also prohibit the growth of GOOD bacteria in the intestinal tract.

I really hope that this one dose of Ceftin will kill everything. I am getting most of the stuff out of my nose, and I don't really feel as congested anymore. But I still have some laryngitis and anything that I do cough up is still green. My concern is that by the time the Ceftin really starts to work, I'm going to be finished with it. Do I call the dr and ask for another 3-5 days of it, since it does seem to be working? Maybe he can just give me a lower dose of it. I'll have to ask about Guaifenex. But my ophthalmologist has to give me permission first! LOL! We keep the heat pretty low in my house, usually around 68. But in the school that I work in, they have to keep it pretty warm for the kids. I find that the warm air humidifier is best for me, because it does not produce dust, mold, etc... all of which I am majorly allergic to!

As for asking for a copy of the scan, I don't really think I need to at this moment, because since my ENT specialist operates in that hospital, he makes frequent trips down to radiology and he looked at my films. Also, if I do need them there won't be ANY problem at all! My mom just recently retired from the radiology department at that hospital. :) Everybody there is her friend, including the drs, and they all know me! Whenever I have to get an X-Ray or any sort of scan, I always make mom call for the appointment! My friends always wonder how I seem to get appointments so much quicker than anyone else! My mom called and got the report over the phone, and the radiologist said there is not even any mucosal thickening or swelling!

I think it all has to be from the strep infection. I mean, who knows how long I had it for before my throat actually started to hurt. It could have been sitting in my nose for weeks.

Have you ever tried using a Neti pot to cleanse your sinuses? I have heard a lot of good things about that.

Thanks again,
Elyse

Wow, you sound like me! You have certainly had your share of sinus problems! I used to be very badly allergic to a lot of foods when I was a child, but when I became a teenager I pretty much grew out of all of my food allergies. Or so I think. I used to get "female problems" from my food allergies when I was a child. Now I don't get that anymore, but I am wondering if they have possibly just moved from one part of my body to another and manifested themselves somewhere else. Although, that theory is probably wrong. My allergist tested me for all of the foods, and I am not allergic to them anymore. He also put me on a strict yeast free, sugar free diet thinking that maybe if I could avoid eating any of the foods that I used to be allergic to, maybe some of my eye and sinus problems would get better. It never happened though, and I just could not live on a diet of all protein and no carbs. It brought back nightmares from when I was a kid and had to go to school with hamburgers on rice cakes for lunch! It still makes me cringe! But at least back then I was allowed to eat some carbs!

I am however, highly allergic to dust and mold. I cannot use cleaning products because the smells give me a headache and hurt my eyes very badly. I also get terrible headaches from the dust getting stirred up when I clean. Sometimes I clean using a pledge grab-it cloth, and that seems to work better. But most of the time I just get somebody else to do it for me! Right now I still live at home, so mom cleans for me. (I'm 22) But in a year or so when I move out, I'm gonna have to get a cleaning service to come in once a week! People think that I'm spoiled, but it's just because I can't tolerate it! When I was a teenager I used to work in a hair salon running errands and cleaning up. I used to dust the product shelves with windex and mr. clean. I used to come home with such bad sinus headaches that I couldn't pick my head up off the pillow for 3 days! Finally I started wearing a dust mask on my face when I cleaned, and that seemed to help. But I eventually had to stop working there. It's bad enough that I have to go in there for haircuts and be around all that hair and hair products!

We use a mixture of white vinegar and bleach to clean my humidifier. Then we just wrinse it really really well before I use it again. This one only needs to be cleaned about once every 7-10 days or so. I really like it.

I called my dr and told him that I am JUST starting to feel better (no fever but still had a very bad sore throat and laryngitis along with headaches and lots of chunky colored mucus) Sorry, didn't mean to be gross! But anyway, I told him that if I am only STARTING to feel better, and I only have one more day left of the anti-biotic, what is going to happen when I get off of it? I told him I didn't think 5 days is enough. So he gave me another 5 days of the Ceftin, and he said if I still don't feel 100% after that, then I have to come back in and see him again because he doesn't want to just keep prescribing anti-biotics. The thing is, my immune system is very very weak right now because I am student teaching in an elementary school and I am getting exposed to all of these germs that are somewhat new to me. Everyone says that for the first few years of teaching, all that you do is get sick. I must wash my hands with anti-bacterial soap 10 or 15 times a day! I have to be very careful because I have severe eye problems and can't afford to get pink eye from the kids! So, I am constantly washing my hands. I can't eat yogurt because I am lactose intolerant. So the pro-biotics and acidophilus work well for me. For the pro-biotic, I take Culturelle, which has natural digestive aids in it. My GI dr recommended it.

How does the Neti pot work? I know that you pour it into your nose, but what kind of solution do you use? And also, when you pour it into your nose, where does it go? Does it come out your mouth? I know that whenever I use any sort of nasal spray, I can always taste it in my mouth, and the saline goes right through my nose and I wind up spitting it out of my mouth. A lot of mucus also comes out with it though, so that's good.

Thanks for all the info,
Elyse

[This message has been edited by purple2067 (edited 03-02-2003).]