• In a case-control study, participants with sinus inflammation showed decreased brain connectivity
• Chronic sinusitis was found to consistently restrict the mental faculties
• 41% of sufferers are more likely to suffer from depression
New findings suggest that sinusitis or chronic rhinosinusitis may have profound effects on neural processing, affecting mental stability, depression, cognition and awareness.
Using data from the Human Connectome Project, an open-access research tool from a massive project beginning in 2009, 22 select participants were chosen to evaluate brain activity in chronic sinusitis patients. According to JAMA Otolaryngology--Head & Neck Surgery, the case-control study showed that participants with sinus inflammation showed decreased brain connectivity within a primary functional hub responsible for regulating cognition.
Conducting a group of tests, including Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics, Cognitive Failures Questionnaire and measuring fatigue via the Fatigue Severity Scale, one study published in the International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology concluded that chronic sinusitis consistently restricted the mental faculties in categories such as objective cognitive functions.
“I see a lot of patients who come in and complain of almost like brain fog or just not feeling as sharp. They're perfectly functional. They're going to work, they go to school and they're doing fine, but they're really just running at 80%, 85% and just don't feel their full self. And that's because they have these chronic sinus issues,” Dr. Brian Lee of Scottsdale Sinus and Allergy Center told Arizona Business Daily.
According to Physician's Weekly, it has been documented that sino-nasal inflammation and chronic rhinosinusitis can considerably impact patients' quality of life. Chronic sinusitis correlates with mental stability, and 41% of patients are more likely to suffer from depression.
Chronic sinusitis occurs due to an infection or exposure to a nasal allergy and includes symptoms such as nasal inflammation, blocked nasal passages, headache and sinus pressure headache, according to Healthline.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that chronic rhinosinusitis affects about 11% of U.S. adults, or nearly 29 million people.
Endoscopic sinus surgery and balloon sinuplasty have long been used to treat chronic sinusitis. A study from 2019, published in the International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology, found that patients routinely showed improvements in cognitive abilities after endoscopic sinus surgery.
Sinusitis and migraines, without a doubt, have an impact on quality of life. Now there is a way to measure the severity of the disease.