Pensacola Times

• Antibiotics are commonly prescribed for sinusitis.

• Doctors warn that overuse of antibiotics can lead to the development of "antibiotic resistance," which can cause serious health complications.

• Patients looking for a long-term solution have treatment options such as balloon sinuplasty.  

Patients who suffer from acute sinus infections are often prescribed antibiotics to treat the infection, but a local doctor has warned that overusing antibiotics could cause bigger issues for the patient in the future.

Dr. Matthew Blair of Gulf Coast Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers said patients who repeatedly use antibiotics to treat their sinusitis could find that eventually, their body develops resistance to those antibiotics, meaning they are no longer effective. 

"There is some risk that you will develop resistance to an antibiotic over time if taken long enough," Blair told Pensacola Times. "That risk is that if you get that same infection somewhere else, your standard antibiotics may not work, meaning you'd have to take stronger antibiotics, IV antibiotics or something of that nature. That bacteria can spread to other people, too, unfortunately, so if you create an antibiotic resistance in bacteria, you can give it to your family member or to the community itself. So that's one of the fears of using antibiotics too often."

WebMD reported that about 90% of adults in America who are diagnosed with acute sinusitis -- or a sinus infection that lasts less than four weeks -- are prescribed antibiotics to treat the infection. Patients who have a sinus infection that lasts more than three months are considered to have "chronic sinusitis." Symptoms for both types of sinusitis can include nasal congestion, headaches, coughing, facial pain or discomfort and nasal drainage. 

The American Heart Association (AHA) warned that changes in a patient's gut microbiota has been linked to the overuse of antibiotics. The AHA said the changes in microbiota can increase the risk for chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease. The report pointed out that the overuse of antibiotics can also lead to premature death. 

Patients who develop antibiotic resistance can face increased risk if they undergo another medical procedure -- such as joint replacements, organ transplants or diabetes treatment -- and develop an infection afterward, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

To learn more about the symptoms of sinusitis and allergies, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.