Karimi, Sonia2008-02-062008-02-062008-02-06https://hdl.handle.net/11299/5669The information provided in this handout does not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Minnesota Medical School physicians and faculty. These materials are provided for informational purposes only and are in no way intended to take the place of the advice and recommendations of your personal health care provider. You use the information provided in these handouts at your own risk.A sinus infection is inflammation or mucosal thickening of the sinuses and can be caused by bacteria, fungi, viruses or allergies. In 2/3 of people, it is caused by a virus and thus will not respond to treatment with antibiotics. In the event that the sinus infection is bacterial in origin, studies have shown that antibiotic treatment, nonetheless, does not decrease the duration of symptoms. In light of the lack of consistent evidence supporting the use of antibiotics for bacterial sinusitis and the fact that most sinus infection are viral in origin and will usually resolve with in 7 days, antibiotic treatment should NOT be first line treatment in acute sinusitis.sinusitisantibioticsupper respiratory infectionOther