What Are Sinus Polyps?
Sinus polyps are tear-shaped tissues inside the nasal region that become inflamed for various reasons. The polyps range in size from very small to quite large. The polyps are not made of cancerous cells. Sinus polyps make it hard for a person to breathe and hamper the removal of mucus, sometimes leading to infection. Sinus Infection Help.com states adults are more prone to then condition, but children can develop polyps, especially children with cystic fibrosis.
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Signs and Symptoms
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Signs and symptoms of sinus polyps include sneezing, nasal congestion, excessive nasal discharge, loss of smell or taste sensation, nasal passage obstruction, postnasal drip (drainage down the back of the throat), facial pain, itchy eyes, headache, snoring, decreased ability to smell, and chronic infections.
Risk Factors
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Factors that increase the risk of developing sinus polyps include family history of the condition, having asthma or cystic fibrosis, and being older. Other conditions that put a person at greater risk for sinus polyps are Churg-Strauss syndrome, which is a disease that causes inflammation to blood vessels and allergic fungal sinusitis, which is an allergy caused by airborne fungi.
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Considerations
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People with sinus polyps often have sensitivities to aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications. The allergic reaction to these medications can be very serious.
Diagnosis
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Diagnosis of sinus polyps can include physical exam and description of symptoms, nasal endoscopy in which a camera on a tube is inserted into the nasal cavity to look for polyps, CAT scan images to see any obstructions, allergy tests and tests to rule out cystic fibrosis.
Treatment
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Treatment options for sinus polyps includes nasal and oral corticosteroids to reduce inflammation and decrease polyp size or eliminate polyps completely, antihistamines to treat allergy symptoms, antibiotics for infections, and antifungal medications for any fungal infections present. For nasal polyps not shrunk or eliminated with medications, surgery is an option. The two types of surgery used to remove sinus polyps are polypectomy and endoscopic sinus surgery. Polypectomy is done when an instrument is inserted into the nasal cavity that cuts and extracts soft tissue and then suctions it out. Endoscopic sinus surgery is performed when an endoscope (a small tube with camera on the end) is inserted into the nasal cavity and small instruments are used to remove polyps and any other obstructions that block fluid drainage from the sinuses.
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