Steroid Nasal Sprays May Help Sinusitis

Steroid nasal sprays either alone or with antibiotic therapy may better ease symptoms of sinusitis, suggests a review by Israeli researchers.

Dr. Anca Zalmanovici of Rabin Medical Center in Petach Tikva and her co-author analyzed data from four randomized controlled trials including nearly 2,000 participants, all with acute sinusitis.

The review published in The Cochrane Library found the studies were far from perfect, making it difficult for the researchers to reach any firm conclusions.

Overall, 73 percent of the patients treated with nasal steroids experienced relief or marked improvement of symptoms during the study period, compared with 66.4 percent of patients who received the placebo.

Although there is not enough evidence to suggest that nasal steroids can stand alone for acute sinusitis treatment, the results of these studies and reviews support the current clinical rationale of adding an intranasal corticosteroid to antibiotic therapy, the reviewers said.