Okeechobee Times

• Sinusitis sufferers could be at risk for heart disease if they don't seek treatment.

• Multiple studies have shown that acute sinusitis and chronic sinusitis can potentially lead to stroke.

• A balloon sinuplasty is a minimally invasive procedure that can help sinus sufferers and reduce their risk for heart disease and stroke.

Many sinusitis sufferers are unaware of the correlation between chronic sinusitis and inflammation, but Dr. Cody Aull of West Palm Beach Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers told Okeechobee Times that this correlation can put patients at a higher risk of having a stroke.

"There is a correlation between chronic sinus pain or chronic sinus disease and infections that lead to inflammation, which increases the chance of a patient having a stroke," Aull said. "I've never met one person who wanted to raise their hand and have a stroke. I don’t want to put fear tactics out there. I don’t want people to think, ‘Oh, my God. I’ve got chronic sinus issues. I’m going to have a stroke.’ I'm not saying that. I’m saying that if you have chronic sinus issues, you're increasing your risk for stroke. Now, your risk might be really low, so increasing it a little might not be a big deal to you. But let's face it, there are a lot of people out there who aren't healthy, and they've got a lot of issues going on. You don't want to increase your risks at all. For example, my dad has multiple medical comorbidities and problems. If he's having a sinus issue, I want to be more aggressive and treat him quickly. Because I don't want him to have another stroke or anything like that. So there's a lot of things like that that we need to be aware of."

According to Next Avenue, sinusitis causes inflammation in the sinus cavities which, if untreated, can lead to an increased risk for stroke, heart disease, neurological disease, rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes. It's for this reason that patients who suffer from sinusitis should seek treatment before they develop these irreversible negative effects.

In 2012, a study published in the American Journal of Rhinology & Allergy found that acute and chronic sinusitis are risk markers for a potential stroke and are divorced from traditional stroke markers. According to a research article published by PLoS ONE in 2018, it was found that chronic sinusitis consistently increases the risk of having a stroke, regardless of the sufferer's demographic.

Healthline reported that balloon sinuplasty is most often recommended to people experiencing chronic sinusitis who have found other treatments to be ineffective. The procedure is straightforward, it features no cutting or removal of bones or tissue, and reported complications are minimal. Following the procedure, many patients are able to return to their daily activities within one to two days. Some may even feel well enough to drive themselves home afterward.

For more information on the symptoms of sinusitis and allergies, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.