A gentleman named Jason H. recounted to me recently how he managed to treat a sinus infection without the use of antibiotics. Jason has a long history of 15 years of chronic sinus problems, and he has undergone 4 sinus surgeries. He is happy about his last operation to remove polyps and fix a deviated septum, and he has also begun using pulsating nasal irrigation with the Grossan Hydro Pulse® device. Nonetheless, he recently managed to come down with another sinus infection. Concerned that he has taken too many antibiotics in his life, he decided to attack the problem using the nasal irrigator. At this point a disclaimer is in order. Neither Jason nor the author of this article are doctors or medical professionals, we are both just sinus sufferers. As such neither of us is qualified to offer medical advice. I would personally urge anyone with a sinus infection, particularly those with chronic problems, to see an ENT specialist.

In any case Jason used his nasal irrigation system 6 times on the day he realized he had an infection, which is a lot, but the next day he felt a lot better. He continued to use the system once or twice a day thereafter, as he normally would, and after three or four days he felt like he was completely over the problem. It was the first time he had ever dealt with a sinus infection without resorting to the use of antibiotics.

I personally know it is possible for the body to heal itself with sinus infections although the process can be long and painful. When I was much younger I used to say “when I get a cold it is really a lulu”, and I would typically be sick for 2 to 3 weeks. It wasn’t unusual for me to be bedridden for 2-4 days with severe headaches and nasal discharge and tearing in the eyes during that period as well. Of course colds don’t last that long, and I now know that what I was experiencing was a sinus infection.

Clearly the body will eventually heal itself, but the healing process can be much faster using proper medications, such as antibiotics in this case. However, I too began to wonder if I was taking too many antibiotics after a number of years. At present I’m pleased to say that my nasal irrigator keeps the amount of antibiotics I use down to a low number.

The main benefit of pulsating nasal irrigation is for prevention, however, rather than treatment of sinus infections that have already taken hold, as Jason used it. I’m personally coming to the conclusion that this procedure would benefit almost everybody. I used to be a person who would become sick fairly regularly, but now I almost never become ill. I’ve gone over 1 ½ years without a cold or sinus infection, and it only happened on that occasion because I was exhausted before a long overseas flight. At that point I simply could not hold the infection off. I sometimes hear about people who don’t have chronic sinusitis and who come down with colds, and this tends to surprise me. I used to be the one who got sick all the time, but now that is almost never the case. If I do feel a cold coming on I’ll use my nasal irrigator two or even three times a day for 1-2 days (I normally use it twice a day in any case). If I feel a possible infection coming on I’ll also take 5 mg of prednisone, and I normally also use a steroid spray, flonase, although there are a number of such products on the market. For about five years now this regimen has worked well for me. One needs to be careful with prednisone, however, as it can cause harmful side-effects. I use it sparingly, and my doctor says it is not an issue.

Once again, I would recommend that most people seek advice from their doctor when they begin to fall ill. People like Jason and I, who have long histories battling sinus infection, can tell when we have one, but that is not the case for most people. There is no doubt, however, that pulsating nasal irrigation with a saline solution is a huge help, and I’m convinced it would help lower the number of colds caught by most people, even those who do not have chronic sinus problems. And it can be used even for treatment of a sinus infection, as Jason did, although it might be best to try this under a doctor’s supervision.