East Ventura News

As an increasing number of patients resort to antibiotics to treat sinusitis -- as well as COVID-19 -- experts warn that overusing the remedy could result in harmful long-term side effects and a lack of effectiveness over time, according to BioWorld.

“Early intervention is so key, and that's what we really aim for in our practice,” Dr. Jeffrey Feinfield of Bella Vista ENT & Facial Plastic Surgery told East Ventura News. “Just giving medications and antibiotics and treating a patient six times is not getting to the root of the problem.”

Feinfield, an otolaryngologist in Thousand Oaks, explains that overusing antibiotics to treat sinusitis can lead to bacterial resistance and ultimately the destruction of the normal gut flora, placing the patient at risk of chronic colon diseases and cancer.

The chronic inflammatory process is known to affect sinuses, leading to a lack of quality sleep and depression, among other symptoms.  A recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study further supports Feinfield's belief, revealing that one-third to one-half of antibiotic use in humans is considered unnecessary or inappropriate, according to Mayo Clinic.

“It's a big problem in the United States. I think we overprescribe antibiotics way too much. It's an easy thing to do. Patients, when they come to a primary care office or an urgent care, they want to leave with something. They want a quick fix,” Feinfield said.

Bella Vista ENT & Facial Plastic Surgery developed a diagnostic quiz to help determine if a patient could benefit from seeing a doctor and potentially receiving a treatment such as balloon sinuplasty, which is a minimally invasive procedure that helps sinus sufferers to drastically reduce their use of antibiotics.