I have had allergies & asthma since I can remember. In the past 5
years I have had 5 sinus surgeries to remove polyps and been to many
doctors, none of which have any idea why my sinus problems are so
severe. My sinus problems have reached a point that I am stuffed up
24 hours a day and haven't smelled anything at all in a long time.
Every time I blow my nose huge amounts of yellow mucus come out. I
have tried ever medication under the sun and the only medication that
works for me is prednisone. I have been on it chronically now for 2+
years. I am now down to 10mg a day which is not enough for me, so I
am on the brink of winding up in the hospital very soon. Usually I
need a high dose every couple of weeks, just to get my head clear.
My doctor swears I have severe allergies and that they are the
problem. I have been to several other doctors ranging from OT's to
allergy specialists and none of them have a clue. Each doctor I have
been to insists I must have cystic fibrosis and they send me for a
test. I have had sweat and blood tests, both coming up negative. I
feel that I actually don't have asthma, only sinusitis induced
asthma. If my nose doesn't drip, I don't have a hard time breathing.
Please help. All suggestions are welcome. I will offer any details
you need in getting some relief.
Thanks,
JL
> I have had allergies & asthma since I can remember. In the past 5
> years I have had 5 sinus surgeries to remove polyps and been to many
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> am on the brink of winding up in the hospital very soon. Usually I
> need a high dose every couple of weeks, just to get my head clear.
You need to have a complete immunological workup. You might be one of
the unfortunate few who has a congenital immunological deficiency. If
you do, then prednisone will make it even harder for your weakened
immune system to cope with the infection:
"Any patients with chronic sinusitis which is poorly responsive to
treatment should have an extensive immunological evaluation including
immunoglobulin levels, possibly IgG subtypes, and antibody testing.
Pneumococcal, diphtheria, and tetanus antibodies should be tested before
and after Pneumovax and diphtheria/tetanus immunizations. Evaluation
should be done by an immunologist familiar with testing as results can
be difficult to interpret. Briefly, blood tests should be done testing
the response to 23 different subtypes of the pneumococcal bacteria.
There should be an adequate rise in the antibody titer measured by the
blood test to determine that the patient has responded to the vaccine.
In cases where an immunodeficiency is found, monthly immunoglobulin
(IVIG) therapy may need to be initiated. Selected patients may
occasionally warrant IVIG despite normal antibody levels. Such patients
must be selectively chosen by experienced clinicians, as IVIG is
extremely costly, especially since insurance is often reluctant to pay
for such an expensive treatment."
http://www.sinuses.com/postsurg.htm
Depending on your personal sexual history, you should also be tested for
HIV.
Finally, my ENT and a few others (e.g. at the Cleveland Clinic) are
starting to realize that gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) can worsen
sinusitis, by refluxing stomach contents all the way up into the
nasopharynx. Anti-acid medications (Prevacid, Nexium) will NOT correct
this problem, since they only prevent acid but not the physical
regurgitation. My ENT has told me about some patients who have
experienced near-cures by having Nissen fundoplication surgeries to
tighten their Lower Esophageal Sphincters. For this you would need to
find an ENT and a gastroenterologist who are willing to work together;
many gastroenterologists are skeptical of this theory and won't do the
surgery just to try to fix sinusitis.
Good luck.

Signature
Steven L.
Email: sdlitvin@earthlinkNOSPAM.net
Remove the NOSPAM before replying to me.
ellen - 15 Sep 2007 19:41 GMT
> > I have had allergies & asthma since I can remember. In the past 5
> > years I have had 5 sinus surgeries to remove polyps and been to many
[quoted text clipped - 53 lines]
> Email: sdlit...@earthlinkNOSPAM.net
> Remove the NOSPAM before replying to me.
the docs at university of michigan are also aware of the GERD link,
but i don't know what treatments they are utilizing for it.
ellen