A Sinus Infection Is Only Contagious If It's Caused By A Virus
If you’ve got a stuffy nose, seemingly endless drainage, and swollen sinuses, there’s a slew of usual suspects that could be making you miserable—from seasonal allergies to the common cold. But if this uniquely terrible discomfort and facial pressure is all-too-familiar, a sinus infection is likely at the top of your list.
Every year, 31 million of us get a sinus infection, a.k.a. sinusitis, and we shell out more than $1 billion on over-the-counter meds to make them go away, per the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI). Because sinus infections feel a lot like other respiratory illnesses (and stopping the spread of germs is on everyone’s mind in the midst of a pandemic!), it’s understandable if you’re wondering whether or not you could pass on a sinus infection to someone else.
So, are sinus infections contagious? And if so, how can you keep yours to yourself? Read on for the answers, with expert insight from an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist.
First, know what you’re dealing with: A sinus infection simply means that your sinuses are inflamed or infected.
Behind the upper bones of your face, you’ve got a set of four sinuses (or air-filled spaces) around your nose—and the same kind of tissue that lines your nose also lines your sinuses. Just as allergies or a bad cold can irritate your nasal passages and give you a stuffy nose, they can also cause one or more of your sinuses to puff up.
When this happens, your sinuses can’t drain as well as they usually do and mucus gets clogged up in there, building up sometimes painful pressure and providing a home for germs to multiply and in turn potentially lead to an infection, explains Inna Husain, MD, an ENT and assistant professor of otolaryngology at Rush Medical College in Chicago, Illinois.
But whether your sinus infection is *contagious* or not depends on what caused it in the first place.
Sinusitis can pop up due to a number of triggers including allergies, asthma, bacteria, fungi, and nasal polyps (a.k.a. non-cancerous growths inside your nose). None of those factors lead to a contagious sinus infection.
However, in most cases, sinus infections develop as a result of upper respiratory infections like colds and the flu, which are caused by viruses that are contagious, says Dr. Husain. If a virus caused your sinus infection, you could pass on that virus to someone else by coughing or sneezing on them. Then, their cold could potentially develop into a full-blown sinus infection.
Because we experience colds and sinus infections as a continuum of cruddy symptoms, it’s easy to assume that *all* sinus infections are contagious when, in reality, it’s a particular pathogen itself that may or may not cause a sinus infection that’s *actually* the contagious part, explains Dr. Husain.
Regardless of whether your sinus infection is contagious, you’ll treat it the same way.
Most sinus infections are pretty good at clearing up on their own, so all you’ll need for the next few days is some good ol’ self-care (hi there, Netflix). On your next CVS run, snag a saline nasal spray to dial down swelling, a good OTC decongestant (ask your doc or pharmacist to recommend one), and—if you’re super stuffed up—a neti pot to mechanically wash out mucus with warm salt water, suggests Dr. Husain. Just do not share your nasal spray or neti pot with anyone (which I'm guessing you’d never do anyway, sick or not!).
To ease the pain from sinus pressure, press a warm compress to your face or breathe in lots of steam from a hot mug or shower for 10 to 15 minutes, three to four times a day.
If it’s been 10 days and you’re still suffering from the same (or worse) symptoms, call up your doctor to schedule an appointment, as you may have a bacterial sinus infection—which will require a prescription for a course of antibiotics, says Dr. Husain.
In the meantime, remember: You can help stop the spread of any type of contagious infection with proper hand hygiene and social distancing practices.
It’s gross but true: “A sinus infection is not contagious unless your infected mucus is shared,” says Dr. Husain. To avoid spreading yours, keep your distance from other people, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, and if you catch or wipe away your snot, wash your hands ASAP.
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