Christi,
My youngest has severe sinus and adenoid issues, and we have used the steroids quite a bit. Her presentation is always the same as what you describe. Her nose does not run, because the goo is running backwards into the lungs, where it triggers the cycle of infection. It sounds like your ENT is on the right path; this is the same treatment we are pursuing for her. IF we can deal with the sinus and adenoid issue, we can reduce the number of times she gets lung infections.
If you are not already doing this, I would also recommend sinus rinses with hypertonic saline. That has helped us get her sinuses to drain. It is not fun to establish the habit; no child likes to have salty water shot up the nose. However, we used fruit snacks as rewards, and after a few months, they are incredibly good about doing them. They actually want to squirt the bottle themselves. We found that if we made it silly time, it helped. We would make comments about how gross the goo was, make funny faces, and try to keep it light. That also worked. We do them routinely, at least a few times a week, even when it is not sinus and allergy season. We find that we can tell something is happening BEFORE it becomes a problem.
I am sorry that you felt we were not listening. The last thing any of us need is to feel more isolated. At least in my case, it was simply a factor of a crazy week. Like others on this list, I would imagine, I am not able to check the forum everyday.
My youngest has severe sinus and adenoid issues, and we have used the steroids quite a bit. Her presentation is always the same as what you describe. Her nose does not run, because the goo is running backwards into the lungs, where it triggers the cycle of infection. It sounds like your ENT is on the right path; this is the same treatment we are pursuing for her. IF we can deal with the sinus and adenoid issue, we can reduce the number of times she gets lung infections.
If you are not already doing this, I would also recommend sinus rinses with hypertonic saline. That has helped us get her sinuses to drain. It is not fun to establish the habit; no child likes to have salty water shot up the nose. However, we used fruit snacks as rewards, and after a few months, they are incredibly good about doing them. They actually want to squirt the bottle themselves. We found that if we made it silly time, it helped. We would make comments about how gross the goo was, make funny faces, and try to keep it light. That also worked. We do them routinely, at least a few times a week, even when it is not sinus and allergy season. We find that we can tell something is happening BEFORE it becomes a problem.
I am sorry that you felt we were not listening. The last thing any of us need is to feel more isolated. At least in my case, it was simply a factor of a crazy week. Like others on this list, I would imagine, I am not able to check the forum everyday.