SE Valley Times

• 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 research findings reveal that chronic sinusitis may have harmful effects on neural processing, which affects mental stability, depression, cognition and awareness.

“Chronic sinusitis can have many significant consequences to one’s health,” Dr. John Stewart of Arizona Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers told SE Valley Times.

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. 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 battery of tests, including Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metrics, Cognitive Failures Questionnaire and measuring fatigue via the Fatigue Severity Scale, a study by the International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology finds that chronic sinusitis consistently restricts the mental faculties in categories such as objective cognitive functions. 

According to Physician’s Weekly, it has been documented that sino-nasal inflammation and chronic sinusitis considerably impact a patient's quality of life. Chronic sinusitis correlates with mental stability, and 41% of patients are more likely to suffer from depression.

Healthline reports that 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 the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, chronic sinusitis 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 having 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.