Follow-Ups to Answer from Expert Howard Finnk, D.D.S., P.A., CEO

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Kim wrote at 2007-01-09 19:49:32
Thanks for the help.  I saw my family physician for now as most of it hit over the holidays and worsened on weekends leaving me to go to urgent care before.  The consensus is it's most likely allergy related.  I had x-rays of my sinuses which are clear and blood work which checked out fine.  My doctor doesn't think I have any spreading infection issues like in my neck.  I'm suppose to continue on treating allergies and if not better in 2 - 3 weeks to return to the doctor.  He mentioned that life stress plus the stress of an ongoing problem can create a snowball effect further lowering one's immunity making it possible to take longer to recover from something.  I'm still seeing my dentist for a while for crowns and some other fillings, so if needed I could have him monitor any tooth pain to check as to whether it was a contributing factor. Moral of the story for those reading:  Don't neglect your teeth!  I think especially if one has a history of a lot of sinus related problems it's even more important to keep up with one's teeth as from what I've read and experienced, it seems to complicate matters. Thanks again for your help.

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becky wrote at 2007-09-25 14:56:39
kim, I have had the same problem, I am actually going through that right now and I'm going to the dentist this week to get this resolved. I do believe that your teeth affect your sinuses because this is not the first time that this has happened to me.  The last time it happened, everything cleared up when I got the root canal.

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Googie wrote at 2008-04-10 18:06:17
Wow. I had a horrible illness following an infected upper molar. On Amoxicillin for nearly 3 weeks. My body was weak, then had tooth extracted. My Dr. and Dentist did not believe how sick I was. Blood tests, nothing showed anything. I was treated with levaquin for over 3 weeks and started feeling better but was literally bed ridden for almost a month. I suspected either endocarditis or guillian barre syndrome. It took a long time to recover. I think the drs. missed all of this.

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Fellow sufferer wrote at 2008-09-05 00:02:10
Some years after an inadvertently incomplete root canal, I had an ongoing sensitivity problem that my dentist could not identify. It became infected April '08. By May, my sinus was included in the infected area, as shown in xrays. It traveled across my head and now resides behind the bridge of my nose. I am allergic to penicillin, so I've taken a course of Erythromycin (endodontist), one of Cipro (MD), and another of Erythromycin (oral surgeon who finally removed the tooth in August '08.) My sinuses are still producing noisome pus and I'm appointed to see another MD tomorrow. Good luck to you!

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Eyebrows wrote at 2009-10-09 22:56:01
I had similar problems a year and a half ago and instead of dentist and endonontist treating the tooth because they could not see infection or issues with the tooth in any of the x-rays, they and subsequent doctors over a the 1.5 years kept treating me for sinus infection and inflamation.  Eventually the tooth I suspected as being the culprit began to get a crevice between the tooth enamel and the filling and I went back to the original dentist.  At first he could not see a problem until I asked him to poke around with a good light and pick.  He did and to his dismay discovered that I had a serious fracture of the molar.  He told me that due to the odor and the physical inspection I had an infection in the tooth and the gum, leading to inflamation of the sinus.  He said I immediately had to have the tooth extracted.  I did and my illnesses has improved, pain is gone in my jaw and face, and my energy is improved.  Moral of the story:  When the pain is bad in face and jaw but x-rays are inconclusive, always have the dentist or endodontist evaluate the teeth or tooth for fractures.  They are very hard to diagnose and you must be vigilant and insist on a full evaluation.  If you have to, find another dentist who will take you serious.  I couldn't get mine to in the beginning and I suffered for a year and a half and didn't need to.  Some friends and family told me I was lucky I didn't die as a result.  I'm just glad we finally figured it out.  Next time I will not be passive about it.

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tony wrote at 2010-06-23 13:06:31
I have had stuffing sinuses and cracking in my ears for along time now.  I recently had 6 teeth removed which were pretty nasty looking.  The stuffy sinus went away and so did the feeling of water in my ears. I think my bad teeth were the culprits!

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janet wrote at 2011-02-11 22:30:39
My dentist just told me yesterday that they are not related. That sinuses are on their own...Im confused.  

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debra volk wrote at 2012-01-24 22:21:47
i Am dieing from a sinus infection antibiotics are not working  keflex and bactrim. i use nasal rince constintly. i dont know hat to do. i cant go on like this. the pain is to much to bare. please someone help. im desprite.

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