Tag Archives: Antibiotics

Sinus infections are the fifth most common reason antibiotics are prescribed for adults. Unfortunately, they are of no help for most sinus infections – this according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Not only are we facilitating the growth of drug resistant bacteria by over prescribing these antibiotics – the research shows it doesn’t even provide symptom relief. Even more disturbing, the numbers show that fewer than two percent of sinus infections are bacterial. Which means the overwhelming majority of sinus infections are viral – of which antibiotics are no help.

The study used a total of 166 adults diagnosed with acute rhinosinusitis, who were randomized to either amoxicillin or placebo treatment group. Among patients with acute rhinosinusitis, a 10-day course of amoxicillin compared with placebo did not reduce symptoms at day 3 or day 10 of treatment.