Can 90% of American Doctors Be Wrong? Antibiotics and Sinus Infections

Yes, according to the study recently reported on by lead researcher Dr. Ian G. Williamson, MD, from the University of Southampton, England. Dr Williamson's study reported the rather startling result that patients with sinus infections who were treated with a course of amoxicillin, the most commonly prescribed antibiotic for treating sinus infections, were no more likely to be cured than those who took nothing at all. In fact, some of the patients in the test took not only a course of antibiotics, but also a nasal steroid spray as well. Dr. Williamson said: "Overall we think antibiotics have a pretty small effect, if there is one there at all".
For those of us who have a history of recurrent sinus infections and who have routinely been treated with amoxicillin for this condition, this comes as a shock. Although I came to the conclusion about seven years or so that pulsating nasal irrigation is the best thing one can do to both prevent and treat a sinus infection, this is still surprising. I remember the days when I had at least 3-4 sinus infections per year. In almost every case the doctor would prescribe antibiotics, usually amoxicillin. I recall feeling that two or three days after beginning the course of medication, things started to improve. Since then I have been taking a steroid spray nightly, and I know that if I forget to take it, I am generally far more congested during the night than normal. Thus the results of this study definitely go against my personal past experience.
I should note that since I discovered pulsating nasal irrigation by reading the book by the famous ENT, Dr. Murray Grossan, I have not been sick very much. According to Dr. Grossan the machine he invented, called the Hydro Pulse, sends jets or pulses of a saline solution into the nose at a certain frequency. This frequency is close to that which the cilia oscillate in a healthy human being. So the idea is to both clean out the bacteria, pollen, viruses, dust, or whatever has been inhaled into the nose while breathing, and also to get the cilia moving properly. I used to get colds and sinus infections at regular intervals, but since then I am almost never sick. I have come to believe that even people who do not have recurrent sinusitis would benefit from this daily regimen. There's no doubt the procedure would prevent millions of people coming down with colds each year, for example.
It is also clear that antibiotics in general have been largely abused. There are horror stories about antibiotic resistant bacteria which have developed because of the overuse of these drugs. In particular, many believe that the plethora of household cleaning products containing agents that kill bacteria which are on the market also contribute to the problem, rather than helping to solve it. The basic theory is that if some amount of bacteria survive the onslaught of antibiotics or antibiotic-enhanced cleaning agents, those bacteria will multiply and produce more bacteria which will also be capable of withstanding the effects of those antibiotics. And so on and so on. Once again, one reads reports these days of strains of bacteria that can withstand even the most enhanced antibiotics, some which were considered to be effective last resorts in years past.
Hopefully Dr. Williamson's study will bring this issue to the forefront of public discussion even more strongly than it has been considered in the past. In general it is becoming obvious that people should use antibiotics sparingly, both as medications and in everyday household products. Certainly for severe cases of sinusitis antibiotics will continue to play a significant role, but in many cases, it appears they are not needed and don't do much if any good.
Walt Ballenberger is founder of http://www.postnasaldrip.net/post_nasal_drip.htm, a resource web site for sinusitis sufferers. Ballenberger is not a medical professional, just a sinus sufferer for years. He found relief using http://www.postnasaldrip.net/sinusirrigart.htm among other things. The site has articles and other information, including a blog where others can exchange ideas about treatments, products, etc.
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Antibiotics - Double-Edged Swords

PENICILLIN, the first and most widely used antibiotic, was discovered back in 1928 by the British bacteriologist Alexander Fleming. But he and his colaborers had many obstacles to overcome, and so it was not until World War II that it finally came to be recognized for its value in combating infections.
The results with penicillin were so remarkable that it was termed a "miracle" or "wonder" drug, and since then many, many other antibiotics have been developed, both organic and synthetic. There is no question about these antibiotics, such as penicillin, having accomplished much good, saving many a life, shortening the recovery time of many a victim of accident or illness.
But the use of antibiotics has not been an unmixed blessing. Why not? Because of the very nature of antibiotics. The name itself should prove a warning, for it comes from two roots: anti, meaning "opposed," and bio, meaning "life." So an antibiotic is an agent opposed to life, that is, it is a killer. A killer of what? Of germs, bacteria, microbes, for which reason "antimicrobials" seems to be preferred in medical literature. "Antimicrobiais" are said to have "toxicity," that is, poisonous characteristics as well as other harmful potentials in addition to therapeutic qualities.
Thus Dr. Zurek, states: "Whenever we employ an antimicrobial agent, we are wielding a truly double-edge sword. We take a calculated risk." That is, the physician hopes to kill certain microbes without harming the cells of the body.
But is this fact fully appreciated by the medical profession, not to mention the public at large? Apparently it is not, for as Dr. Adams states in the foreword to the above-mentioned textbook "drugs are frequently administered . . . apparently without due regard for their disquieting and sometimes dangerous potentialities. One need but mention, for example, the widespread use of antibiotics for trivial upper respiratory infections and comparable minor ailments-a practice that seems to continue in spite of the exhortations of many qualified authorities that these agents are, as a rule, ineffective in such cases."
A health committee reports that in one study of 1,045 patients, 340 were receiving antibiotics but only 13 percent of these (or some 45) actually should have received such medication. In another report a physician tells that from "90 to 99 percent of those who were receiving chloramphenicol were getting it for a non-indicated purpose." And Dr. Lee, state that at times antibiotics "have caused illnesses more severe than the diseases they were intended to combat."
Indicative of the overuse of antibiotics is the fact that in the United States, during the last decade, yearly roughly 30,000 tons of antibiotics were produced and certified for distribution. This is enough for sixty doses for every man, woman and child in the country. Today 2007 the situation is worse. According to Dr. Dowling, a highly respected authority on this subject, "it is doubtful that the average person has an illness that requires treatment with an antibiotic more often than once every five or ten years."
Helping to account for this great consumption of antibiotics is their use in hospitals. On an average day some 40 percent of the patients are given at least one antibiotic. According to a leading authority on this subject, "it is inconceivable to me . . . to believe that 40 percent of the patients in the hospital require an antimicrobial drug. . . . I think that there is no question but that these drugs are . . . used excessively."
Cutting the Wrong Way
Just how serious is the double-edged aspect of antibiotics? According to Dr. Zurek, "the list of untoward effects is enormously long," and "it would seem there is a true ever-increasing incidence of adverse drug reactions."
While some may hold them to be exceptions, take note of these examples: There was a man of twenty-five years with a sore throat. His doctor gave him an antibiotic, chloramphenicol, for nine days. In less than two months he had very severe symptoms caused by this drug and in six months he was dead.
Then there was a woman forty-seven years old who was treated for a sore throat with penicillin. In three days she had all manner of complications, such as red lumps on her body, itching and difficulty in urinating. In spite of the use of an artificial kidney machine, she died.
In another instance a twelve-year-old girl was treated with chloramphenicol. It resulted in her being afflicted with a dangerous blood disease, from which she died. According to another report, hundreds of persons have died from chloramphenicol (trade name "Chloromycetin"), and in spite of the fact that for more than twenty-five years doctors have been warned about this drug, it is still being prescribed unnecessarily.
Why this overuse of antibiotics? With the advent of antibiotic therapy, the treatment of most infectious diseases took on a new specificity. At least something was available that could attack the germs causing the disease. Where a cause could not be isolated, the antibiotic was given empirically, that is, without sound basis, by enthusiastic doctors. And what is more, the patient many times demanded it. As a consequence, there has been much unjustified use of antibiotics.
No doubt another reason for the overuse of antibiotics is the desire of doctors just to do something, tending to consider only the potential benefits of these drugs. Still another reason, suggested by S. M. Wolfe, is the possibility that for information about drugs doctors depend too much on the biased sales pitches of drug company representatives.
Why Two-edged?
Why do antibiotics help many people but not help all? Why are they so often two-edged swords? One factor is the physical condition of the patient. Powerful antibiotics are likely to have powerful toxic side effects. It is the function of the liver and the kidneys to get rid of toxic agents. But if the liver is diseased or the kidneys function inadequately, they may not get rid of the toxic residues of the antibiotic and, as a result, the cells of the body succumb to the poisons and the patient sickens and may even die.
An even more frequent cause of complications resulting from the use of antibiotics is allergy or some type of intolerance. Any patient may be allergic to one or more antibiotics, as a result of which harm and even death may come to the patient. For example, of more than a thousand reported life-threatening reactions caused by antibiotics, the vast majority involved penicillin, and, of these, 10 percent were fatal.
There is also the problem of microbes developing drug immunity, resisting the bacteriocidal effect of the antibiotic. This has been seen recently in the treatment of gonorrhea. For years the gonococcus germ causing this disease was extremely sensitive to penicillin so that recovery from this disease was almost certain if the antibiotic was administered. Lately, however, penicillin-resistant strains of gonococcus have developed, so that now other, less effective drugs have to be used.
Still another reason why an antibiotic may turn out to be a double-edged sword is that it may wipe out all except certain strains, which then increase and cause completely new or complicating diseases. Such "superinfections" are caused by the microbes not susceptible to the antibiotic but which have been kept in check by the other microbes in a sort of "natural" balance.
Regarding this aspect of matters, a newspaper report of doctors warning that overuse of the most widely administered antibiotic has fostered development of a new resistant kind of infant brain inflammation. The antibiotic is ampicillin, a synthetic form of penicillin. According to Dr. Ross, "ampicillin has been beaten to death by being used indiscriminately by physicians both inside and outside the hospital." It "used to be the drug of choice for . . . a serious intestinal disease. In 1967, 5 percent of [such] cases were resistant to it. Today 2007, 95 percent are resistant. . . . The growing resistance scares . . . us."
An example of this is the potential effect of some antibiotics on the intestinal flora, the useful bacterial population of the intestines so essential to the proper and maximum assimilation of food. According to many practitioners, continued use of antibiotics may kill not only harmful bacteria but also much of the intestinal flora. For this reason certain practitioners urge the use of yogurt or like milk products whenever a person is taking antibiotics.
Frankie Goh is a family counselor and researcher.
He manage a website : Earn Money Online http://www.ezy-cash.com/
He is also the Internet Marketing Co-ordinator of Healthbuy.com Herbal Products & Easy Forex (Foreign Exchange).
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Water Pills For High Blood Pressure

Lozol, also known as Indapamide, is a water pill (thiazide diuretic) which prevents fluid retention in patients with congestive heart failure. This medication can be used to treat high blood pressure or hypertension with the approval of your doctor or pharmacist.
Most likely you will be advised not to take Lozol from your doctor if you are suffering from serious kidney disease, have difficulty in urinating or liver problems. Besides that, if you are allergic to drugs that contains sulfa or your potassium (K) levels are very low, a condition known as hypokalemia, you should not take Lozol. Other risk factors include lupus, gout, and diabetes.
However, it does not mean that if you have the conditions as stated above, you can't take Lozol. Depending on your health conditions, your doctor may still allow you to take this drug under his close supervision. Your dosage may be adjusted and you may need to have a more frequent check up by your doctor during the medication period.
Lozol must be taken with care. Do not dehydrate yourself during your treatment. So, please be careful if you are doing strenuous exercise or staying under the hot sun. Your doctor should advise you how much additional fluid you should intake. Do it according to his advice.
After taking Lozol, even if your high blood pressure conditions have improved, you should not stop taking the medication abruptly. You should still continue to take it even if you feel better after a certain period. Of course, you need to consult your doctor as always and see what he has to tell you. If you suddenly feel like fainting, your mouth dries up or weakness of the muscle, you may have overdosed on Lozol. You must seek medical help immediately if you think your over-consume Lozol.
In addition, if for no reason, you develop allergic hives, swollen lips, face, throat or have difficulty in breathing, discontinue your Lozol medication and seek your doctor.
Alvin Hopkinson is a leading researcher of various high blood pressure treatments. He runs an informational website that provides free tips to lower your hypertension and unbiased reviews on medications such as Lozol. To take advantage of such solid resources, make sure you visit Alvin's site at http://www.minusbloodpressure.com/.
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Common Blood Pressure Medications For Stage 1 Hypertension

The National High Blood Pressure Education Program is an association that consist of professional, public, voluntary and federal agencies. This association has established guidelines with regards with the type of common blood pressure medication to be used to control your high blood pressure.
There a huge number of drugs available that are used as common blood pressure medications (Antihypertensives). Each of the different medication has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Below are the association guidelines for common blood pressure medications to be used. Bear in mind that the actual drug that your doctor prescribed might be different due to the complexity of individual situations.
If you have stage 1 high blood pressure (140/90 to 159/99)
If your systolic pressure (top number) ranges from 140 to 159 or your diastolic pressure (bottom number) ranges from 90 to 99, or both your top and bottom numbers are in this range; you have stage 1 hypertension.
Diuretics might be the first type of medication that your doctor might ask you to take. Diuretics are also called water pills. This drug works by getting rid of excess water and sodium from your body. This will effectively lower your blood pressure. This drug together with a move to a healthier lifestyle might be sufficient to control your blood pressure.
There are mainly three types of Diuretics available in the market. One of the first choices among the three is usually a thiazide diuretic. Thiazide diuretics are chosen over the other two as they usually have fewer side effects as compared. Moreover, they are able to prevent other conditions such as stroke and heart failure to a certain extent. High blood pressure can often result in such undesirable conditions.
Diuretic could be the only common blood medication that you need to take. However, under certain conditions, your doctor might recommend taking another medication. Complement your medication together with a healthy lifestyle in order to effectively control your high blood pressure.
Some of these choices include:
Calcium channel blockers: Stops calcium from entering both the heart and blood vessel muscle cells. This allows the cells to relax and thus lowering blood pressure.
Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors: These works by eliminating the production of a hormone that causes blood vessels to constrict. Thus, they keep the blood vessels relaxed.
Angiotensin II receptor blockers: Enlarges blood vessels by preventing a hormone called Angiotensin from affecting vessels.
Beta blockers: Lowers blood pressure by lowering the total amount of nerve signals going from the heart to the blood vessels.
Complementing one of the medications from the above list with Diuretic might be helpful in lowering your blood pressure at a faster rate. Thus, probability of developing complications from high blood pressure is lowered.
Another point is that by taking two medications instead of one might allow you to consume a lesser amount of each drug. This might work to reduce the side effects experience and could possibly allow you to lower costs. The choice of medication used in the combination depends on individual condition.
Alvin Hopkinson is a leading and avid researcher of various high blood pressure treatments. He runs an informational website that provides free tips to lower your hypertension and unbiased reviews on medications such as Altace. To grab your FREE report on how to prevent and treat high blood pressure, make sure you visit Alvin's site at http://www.minusbloodpressure.com/
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