blood tests for sinus infection

[Graven Water]

As you may know, you can have a low-grade deep sinus infection with no or
very little specific symptoms - just feeling miserable and maybe a vaguely
heavy-headed feeling. Or no specific symptoms except for mucus draining into
your throat all the time.

But if you have such a thing, does it have to show up on blood tests?
Like cause an elevated white blood cell count, CRP, sed rate? If it's bad
enough to make you feel sick, should it show up on blood tests?

Laura

[truehawk]

Post by Graven Water
As you may know, you can have a low-grade deep sinus infection with no or
very little specific symptoms - just feeling miserable and maybe a vaguely
heavy-headed feeling. Or no specific symptoms except for mucus draining into
your throat all the time.
But if you have such a thing, does it have to show up on blood tests?
Like cause an elevated white blood cell count, CRP, sed rate? If it's bad
enough to make you feel sick, should it show up on blood tests?
Laura

Laura;
Maybe Judy knows what tests are currently available.
Since the bacteria are attached to the moist membranes, outside the
blood stream, I don't think they cause the classical elevation in
white blood cell count, sed rate, etc.
Actually I suspect that there are blood markers that would be
indicative of a biofilm sinus infection. I suspect that since the
bacteria express toxins that 40 % the biofilm forming bacteria use
produce soluble beta amyloid which they catalyze out of solution with
special chaperone enzymes to form the curli which attach themselves to
the exterior of cells. I believe that elevated soluble beta amyloid
will be found to be a marker when they get around to looking at the
association. But since most medical collages still teach that
sinusitis is due to an allergic etiology and the beta amyloid
associate with Alzheimer's is also assumed to be endogenously
produced, it is going to take a paradigm shift for this type of blood
test to be considered, much less developed.
I also believe that the infection produces factors that raise blood
pressure, so a sinus infection accompanied by a sudden increase in
blood pressure above the historical baseline could be used as a marker
if this holds true upon investigation. Again I don't think that any
teams are even looking for this data......Yet.

[d***@yahoo.com]

Post by truehawk

Post by Graven Water
As you may know, you can have a low-grade deep sinus infection with no or
very little specific symptoms - just feeling miserable and maybe a vaguely
heavy-headed feeling. Or no specific symptoms except for mucus draining into
your throat all the time.
But if you have such a thing, does it have to show up on blood tests?
Like cause an elevated white blood cell count, CRP, sed rate? If it's bad
enough to make you feel sick, should it show up on blood tests?
Laura

Laura;
Maybe Judy knows what tests are currently available.
Since the bacteria are attached to the moist membranes, outside the
blood stream, I don't think they cause the classical elevation in
white blood cell count, sed rate, etc.
Actually I suspect that there are blood markers that would be
indicative of a biofilm sinus infection. I suspect that since the
bacteria express toxins that 40 % the biofilm forming bacteria use
produce soluble beta amyloid which they catalyze out of solution with
special chaperone enzymes to form the curli which attach themselves to
the exterior of cells. I believe that elevated soluble beta amyloid
will be found to be a marker when they get around to looking at the
association. But since most medical collages still teach that
sinusitis is due to an allergic etiology and the beta amyloid
associate with Alzheimer's is also assumed to be endogenously
produced, it is going to take a paradigm shift for this type of blood
test to be considered, much less developed.
I also believe that the infection produces factors that raise blood
pressure, so a sinus infection accompanied by a sudden increase in
blood pressure above the historical baseline could be used as a marker
if this holds true upon investigation. Again I don't think that any
teams are even looking for this data......Yet.

I would hope so... but i had a cbc and thyroid check because i had
been so fatigued. My wbc came back within a normal range. Of course i
was less symptomatic when the blood was drawn. The symptoms of
infection came back really bad and i will now be starting my 3rd round
of antibiotics. I have definitely gotten better, but today i started
with a bit of green again. The doc ordered another 14 days .. so
tired of it. But with the weather up and down and just being plain
paranoid i will take them and continue to irrigate

[Graven Water]

Well, I got blood tests like CBC etc and it all came back normal.

I don't think this doctor understands chronic sinusitis. He's just a
family doctor. It's SO
frustrating, he examined me looking for an acute sinus infection, he
noticed I didn't have goop coming out of my nose or anything and he kind
of dismissed the idea of sinus infection.
I've been sick since the middle of December! With goop going down the
back of my throat. I've been irrigating my sinuses twice a day for a
couple of weeks or so, using pseudoephedrine for a long time. And for
about the last week I've been using a lot of guaifenesin, it helps me to
feel better and my sinuses drain like crazy but I'm not feeling OK, not
at all. I may be getting better but I'm not sure. I keep on getting
dizzy. One doctor (there are several at this practice) gave me 11 days
of Zithromax. It didn't make me well, but maybe it helped. When he
looked at me the lymph nodes in my neck were swollen, so that made him
think along with my long term cold-like symptoms, that it probably was an
infection.

I'm almost completely sure it isn't allergies, I can screen for that
by turning my exhaust ventilation way up and the air
circulation fan on. Even if there was something molding I wouldn't be
breathing it. And allergies would make my eyes red, and they aren't.
It's frustrating. I might need a good long course of antibiotics, or
maybe the non-antibiotic methods will work eventually.

From what people here have said, normal CBC etc does NOT mean I don't
have a simmering sinus infection. Which is what it seems to be.

It seems to have kind of settled in and gotten very difficult to shake.

I had what were probably low-grade deep sinus infections for 15-20 years.
But they would go away in a week. I'd be pretty sick for a week, then I'd
pull out of it.

They might have been just viral sinus infections, since they didn't last
more than about a week. I'd have about 6/year.

I managed not to have any for many years by taking care
of allergies and food intolerances. But I don't think anything like that
is playing a part now, and I'm not getting over it.

Laura

[d***@yahoo.com]

Post by Graven Water
Well, I got blood tests like CBC etc and it all came back normal.
I don't think this doctor understands chronic sinusitis. He's just a
family doctor. It's SO
frustrating, he examined me looking for an acute sinus infection, he
noticed I didn't have goop coming out of my nose or anything and he kind
of dismissed the idea of sinus infection.
I've been sick since the middle of December! With goop going down the
back of my throat. I've been irrigating my sinuses twice a day for a
couple of weeks or so, using pseudoephedrine for a long time. And for
about the last week I've been using a lot of guaifenesin, it helps me to
feel better and my sinuses drain like crazy but I'm not feeling OK, not
at all. I may be getting better but I'm not sure. I keep on getting
dizzy. One doctor (there are several at this practice) gave me 11 days
of Zithromax. It didn't make me well, but maybe it helped. When he
looked at me the lymph nodes in my neck were swollen, so that made him
think along with my long term cold-like symptoms, that it probably was an
infection.
I'm almost completely sure it isn't allergies, I can screen for that
by turning my exhaust ventilation way up and the air
circulation fan on. Even if there was something molding I wouldn't be
breathing it. And allergies would make my eyes red, and they aren't.
It's frustrating. I might need a good long course of antibiotics, or
maybe the non-antibiotic methods will work eventually.
From what people here have said, normal CBC etc does NOT mean I don't
have a simmering sinus infection. Which is what it seems to be.
It seems to have kind of settled in and gotten very difficult to shake.
I had what were probably low-grade deep sinus infections for 15-20 years.
But they would go away in a week. I'd be pretty sick for a week, then I'd
pull out of it.
They might have been just viral sinus infections, since they didn't last
more than about a week. I'd have about 6/year.
I managed not to have any for many years by taking care
of allergies and food intolerances. But I don't think anything like that
is playing a part now, and I'm not getting over it.
Laura

kind of a bummer...hoping there would be something in the blood work.
My family doc didn't even seem interested in treating my sinus
infection. He seemed to think it was too early to treat when i had
gone to urgent care. He isn't a fan of daily decongestants. I just
need to find a new family doc. The allergist is taking this more
seriously. Does your insurance cover allergists/ents? I think you
will have much better luck getting a long term antibiotic therapy out
of them. Just having a nurse and doctor understand and believe me when
i describe how i feel.. gave me relief!

good luck