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Medical Forum / Diseases and Disorders / Sinusitis / February 2007Can Sinusitis Affect Vision?
For as long as I can remember I have had congested sinus that I always attributed to allergies until an allergy doctor told me (after doing the allergic reaction test) that I don't. That didn't explain why my sinuses are always congested or why I get a sinus infection 3 or 4 times a year. Occasionally when I wake up, I am extremely congested on one side (I sleep on my side with one side that was on the pillow). This is accompanied by a severe headache. On the worst days, the eye on the really congested side of my head hurts and feels like something is pushing it from the back. It also seems that my vision in this eye is not as clear in the other eye. Can sinus pressure affect your vision in this manner? Is this something that I really need to worry about? My doctor (primary care physician) as well as the allergist I saw have been recommended surgery but I don't see the benefit if they don't know what is causing this and it could return shortly after the surgery. Thanks for any help. Kevin Renn When my sinuses were really infected I would see slightly double vertically, like a ghost image on an ancient TV. It goes away when my sinuses area better. I have been told blurred vision is a pretty common symptom in chronic sinusitis, that if it goes away when my sinuses are clear, I don't have a brain tumor. Good to know. My sinus affect my vision, sometimes just the pressure and other times they seem to have fluid draining into them. The mornings are the worst waking up with a headache. shirleyann > For as long as I can remember I have had congested sinus that I always > attributed to allergies until an allergy doctor told me (after doing the [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Kevin Renn Kevin, what happens is that the tissues in your lower orbitals become inflammed. When they become inflamed, I think they swell and cause the blurred vision and gives you discomfort. When I was at my worst, I had a chronic sinus infection. The ducts between my eyes and nose were inflammed giving me a bug-eyed look. My dripping sinuses dripped into my lungs giving me chronic bronchitis. It was this way for 3 years until I finally quit my job. The cigarette smoke in my office was the main culprit. I am allergic to other things too but the smoke in my office caused a big problem If your nasal passage is clogged, one(1) spray of Aftin in the clogged passage will cause your nose to drain. Flonase or another steroid will prevent the nasal passages from becoming too inflammed. Try keeping your nasal passages clean. Wash them out with a saline-baking soda misture. I think that the clogged nasal passage also aids in causing sleep apnea. Fred > Occasionally when I wake up, I am extremely congested on one side (I sleep > on my side with one side that was on the pillow). This is accompanied by a [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Can sinus pressure affect your vision in this manner? Is this something > that I really need to worry about? Yep. While it's more likely to be not that serious, it could possibly be the early sign of a mucocele growing in an ethmoid sinus that is beginning to intrude into the orbit of your eye socket. That has to be checked because it can lead to blindness if not treated. http://www.american-rhinologic.org/news.1101.visualloss.phtml Last year (or maybe it was the year before that) we had someone on this NG who had such a mucocele invading the orbit of her eye. You can probably locate the discussion via the Google archive of this NG. You should see an ENT.  SignatureSteven D. Litvintchouk Email: sdlitvin@earthlinkNOSPAM.net Remove the NOSPAM before replying to me. Thanks everyone for the info. My mama always told me it would make me go blind... It has been happening for several years now so I suspect if it was the worst case scenario, I would be blind by now. I am considering going to a ENT. I just want some releif from my sinus misery or a "cure". Is a ENT going to do anything my primary care physician isn't already doing? > Yep. While it's more likely to be not that serious, it could possibly > be the early sign of a mucocele growing in an ethmoid sinus that is [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > You should see an ENT. > I am considering going to a ENT. I just want some releif from my sinus > misery or a "cure". Is a ENT going to do anything my primary care > physician isn't already doing? He'll very likely order a full sinus CT scan, something he's trained to interpret but a primary care physician is not. It should tell you what's going on inside your sinuses with a resolution of maybe 5 mm. He may also do a nasal endoscopy, putting a flexible periscope up your nostrils to inspect the sinus ducts directly. If there is drainage, he can use the endoscope to take a culture right from the sinus duct. Then he can decide on a proper course of treatment. An accurate diagnosis is the most important thing--and primary care physicians are too often stymied because they don't have these tools for direct observation. SignatureSteven D. Litvintchouk Email: sdlitvin@earthlinkNOSPAM.net Remove the NOSPAM before replying to me. Your eyes are serious. You need to start trying to find a good ENT NOW because it is likely to take a while. Find one who know that most Chronic sinusitis is caused by infection, cause if they only know how to slice and dice or treat allergy, you will respond well only if you happen to have the conditions that they know how to treat. If all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. When it comes to dealing with the delicate tubing around your eyes you want someone with the whole tool kit. Do some research or you can easily waste your time and money. If the ENT's favorite drug is Amoxicillian, run don't walk to find a different ENT, cause Amox does not work very well against the bacteria in biofilms, and most CS is caused by biofilm infections. Clindamycian, Zithromax and Itraconazole are effective. You might ask pharmists to recommend docs who prescribe these drugs. If you couch the question in careful language, they might reply. If your GP will prescribe 12 weeks of treatment you might be home free, but don't count on it. They probably will insist on you seeing the specalist and having 5K worth of tests before anyone will prescribe. U Penn, U WVa, U Michigan have knowledgeagle ENT clinics. Doc Grossan is at Cedar Sinai in LA, he might be able to help you or help you find an eye specalist. There is a fungi called alternaria that likes eyes, so don't dawdle around. Elizabeth username@zianet.com (Kevin Renn) wrote: >Can sinus pressure affect your vision in this > manner? My eyes tend to become blood shot from the pressure. ...Also, for a year or two, my eyeball hurt if I put any pressure on it, such as rubbing it. ...It was my irrigation with hydrogen peroxide that finally cured that problem (that was 3 years ago, I believe) Also... If my sinuses are acting up (even if I have no pain), sometimes I feel like there is pressure pushing my eyeballs from behind. It's irritating. ..As for vision, I normally wear glasses. But I'm sure it has fluctuated with any flair-ups. ...Jon |
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