According to a new review by researchers from Israel, steroid nasal sprays – either alone or with antibiotic therapy – can prove to be effective in preventing and curing acute sinusitis, which can develop following a chest cold.
The review was published in an issue of The Cochrane Library, a renowned publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, which is an international organization evaluating all aspects of health care.
It is believed that approximately 37 million Americans suffer from acute sinusitis. The findings of this review will help them and patients worldwide to get relief.
From News-Medical.Net:
Study participants, who underwent X-rays or nasal endoscopy to confirm diagnosis, received either a placebo or intranasal corticosteroids for two or three weeks, alone or in combination with antibiotics. Intranasal corticosteroids used included fluticasone propionate (Flonase), mometasone furoate (Nasonex) and budesonide (Rhinocort).
Overall, 73 percent of the patients treated with nasal steroids experienced relief or marked improvement of symptoms during the study period, compared with only 66.4 percent of patients who received the placebo.
“For every 100 patients treated with intranasal corticosteroids, seven additional patients had complete or marked symptom relief,” compared to those in the placebo group, the reviewers found.
Researchers pooled data from three of the four studies, excluding the lowest-quality study from the statistical analysis.
None of the studies reported serious side effects, and rates of sinusitis relapse were similar between the treatment and placebo groups.
Stronger doses of nasal steroids appeared to work better. Patients receiving daily doses of 400 micrograms were more likely to experience relief of sinusitis symptoms, than were patients receiving 200-microgram doses.
Allen Seiden, M.D., director of the University of Cincinnati Taste and Smell Center, remarked that more data is required before recommendations for intranasal corticosteroids can be made.
The involved reviewers were of the view that the findings of this review support the clinical rationale behind addition of an intranasal corticosteroid to antibiotic therapy.
