A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine examined antibiotic courses prescribed for acute sinus infections.
Researchers used the 2016 National Disease and Therapeutic Index to investigate 3.7 million visits to physicians where antibiotics were prescribed for acute sinusitis. They grouped the antibiotics as penicillins, tetracyclines, fluoroquinolones, cephalosporins, azithromycin or other. They noted treatment duration in days.
The Infectious Diseases Society of America recommends five to seven days of antibiotic treatment for uncomplicated cases. However, the study shows 69.6 percent of antibiotic therapies for sinusitis were prescribed for 10 days or longer.
Additionally, when prescriptions for azithromycin were excluded, 91.5 percent of antibiotic courses were prescribed for 10 days or longer.