Everyone is talking about the paper from the MAYO clinic. What is it all about?
The article published in the MAYO proceedings of September 1999 reported that using specialized techniques, fungal growth was found in 96% of patients with chronic sinusitis. Fungal growth was found in 100% of normal healthy volunteers, people without sinusitis. Why is this interesting? Well, the researchers have found evidence that the sinus patients appear to have an abnormal inflammatory reaction to the fungus, while normal subjects do not. These researchers speculate that treating fungus in these patients may improve their symptoms. The discovery that fungus is present in healthy people and in patients with chronic sinusitis was a surprise. The apparent difference in the way these two groups react to fungus provides some hope for new treatments.
