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Review: antibiotics are only slightly more effective than placebo for clinically diagnosed acute rhinosinusitis in adults

J Young

Dr J Young, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland; jyoung@uhbs.ch

QUESTIONS
Are antibiotics effective for treatment of adults with clinically diagnosed acute rhinosinusitis? Are there any signs or symptoms that identify patients most likely to benefit from antibiotics?

REVIEW SCOPE
Studies selected compared an antibiotic with placebo in adults with clinical signs and symptoms of acute rhinosinusitis. Studies involving diagnosis by imaging, laboratory tests, or bacterial culture were excluded. Outcome was proportion of patients cured.

REVIEW METHODS
Medline, EMBASE/Excerpta Medica, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and reference lists were searched for randomised controlled trials (RCTs). 10 RCTs providing 11 comparisons (n = 2782, median age 35 y [adolescents were included in 6 RCTs]) met the selection criteria. All trials were double-blinded; loss to follow-up was <4% in all but 2 trials and 3.6% overall. Duration of follow-up was 8–15 days (median 12 d). Individual patient data were requested from authors of the original . . . [Full text of this article]

Ruth Martin Misener

Dalhousie University School of Nursing, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada