Can the City’s Poor Air Quality Be the Reason for Your Sinus Problems?
The city of Los Angeles is no stranger to air pollution; smog has plagued the air for decades, and it’s getting worse due to the city’s high population and citizens’ reliance on cars. Los Angeles is ranked as one of the U.S. cities with the highest pollen count and air pollution rating.
Scientists who study the environmental factors behind sinus and nasal disorders are beginning to suspect that city life may have something to do with it. Studies have found that there are more breathing problems among people who live in large cities and industrial areas with polluted air.
Scientists were hoping that understanding breathing disorders can allow them to provide the best chronic nasal congestion treatment in Los Angeles possible. A breakthrough study showed that mice who were breathing in polluted air for 6 hours a day had more white blood cells in their mucus. After flushing the mice’s sinuses, scientists inferred that the ones that had been exposed to smog had more inflammation. In fact, their sinuses and nasal cavities were similar to those who live in Asian countries that suffer from high levels of air pollution.
Living in a city with air pollution may cause you to experience more breathing and sinus issues, such as sinus infections, chronic sinusitis, asthma, and post nasal drip. Luckily the ENT specialists at Westside Head & Neck are experienced in handling these kinds of disorders.
A common culprit behind your sinus and nasal discomfort may be chronic sinusitis since the CDC estimates that 12% of American adults have a chronic sinusitis diagnosis. Chronic sinusitis can cause complications like sinus pressure, congestion headaches, and congested or drippy noses.
Sinus issues are more than just an annoyance in your day, as they can cause you to be less productive because you’re fatigued or depressed from your symptoms. If you are suffering from frequent sinus congestion, there’s no need to continue suffering.
Contact an ENT doctor in Los Angeles to set up an appointment. We can go over your symptoms to suggest solutions that can put an end to your symptoms instead of just treating them. Some of the solutions we offer include immunotherapy through either allergy shots or allergy drops, and we can even conduct sinus surgery like balloon sinuplasty to manually clear the infected mucus from your nasal passages.
Call (310) 361-5439 to set up an appointment!