Anyone used Tea Tree Oil in a nasal rinse for chronic sinusitis?

Hi @fdixon63, I'd like to tag @brigby and @jenniferhunter as they may be able to share their experiences with nasal rinse. Has your doctor recommended the use of tea tree oil in your nasal rinse?

@fdixon63 What I have done for sinus infections is to use a vaporizer and inhale steam that contains oil of oregano. I saw that on Dr. Oz and
I have a face mask on a heating vessel from a pharmacy and I put a few drops of the oil in there. I also have just held the eye dropper under my nose and let steam waft past it. Be careful about inhaling steam that is too hot and being too close to the source and the vapors of the oil burn, so close your eyes. You probably could do the same with tea tree oil, but I haven't tried it.

What I also do for a sinus issue (aside from saline rinsing) is to use Bactroban (generic Mupiroicin) ointment directly in my nostrils. This was something my Mayo surgeon had me do before surgery to treat a potential staff infection as a precaution. I've had sinus issues that seem to progress to my chest, and I've treated them like this and it works, so my primary doctor gave me a prescription for the ointment. Before my surgery, I was to use a pea sized glob in each nostril 2 x day for 10 days. When you get it up high enough, it spreads out and you taste it, and it makes my nose run, so I tend to do this before I lay down at night. I usually treat for about 4 to 5 days for sinus issues and that is enough. Controlling the phlegm from allergies goes a long way in preventing respiratory infections.

I have had tremendous success using nano silver to as a nasal rinse. It cleared up my infection and keeps it gone. Did better that sinus surgery, saline, antibiotic/ steroid rinses!

@jenniferhunter ..
Thank you SO MUCH for this reminder about
Mupirocin . I am having surgery tomorrow and had read this in a previous post and
forgot about it!
PTL!

I have not heard of nano silver before. Do you mix with distilled water? Where do you get it? Once you get sinus infection cleared up do you use maintenance rinses? Thanks for the information.

Thanks for the information. Did you use Bactroban prior to having sinus surgery? Just wanting to get clarification.

I use a 10 percent solution no mixed with anything. I lie in my back with my head leaning over the edge of the bed and use a small amount in a nasal tin even bottle. Just fill up each nostril, pinch the nostrils and lean a bit from side to side. Then gently blow out into a towel. It does burn a bit at first but that gets better each time you use it. It immediately unclog my nose and lasts all day. I just do it once a day for 3 days if allergies bad and 7 days if active infection. It has changed my life and no nose bleeds!

I used it for a couple of weeks in August. When I talked to my ENT during a follow up appt. on Aug. 19, he said he had heard some of his patients talk about using Tea Tree Oil but he can only recommend saline rinses. After that I did stop but don't think it was hurting anything so may use again. Thanks.

I would caution anyone, but especially people with compromised lungs, that inhaling anything not intended to be inhaled can be dangerous. Remember that if you have bronchiectasis, your lungs do not work properly to clear irritants. That means tea tree oil and any possible carrier oils could irritate your lungs and you may not be able to expel it effectively. Also, I was unable to find any information on whether MAC is destroyed by tea tree oil, which means the oil you inhale COULD be contaminated by MAC or other difficult to kill bacteria. Finally, there has been little or no unbiased research on what medications may interact with it. I am a big believer in complementary medicine, and have used herbs, acupuncture, chiropractic and oriental medicine along with contemporary medicine, but only after research regarding safety and effectiveness. There is substantial evidence regarding safety and effectiveness for use of tea tree oil for some skin conditions. There is no actual evidence, other than anecdote and Dr Oz for inhaling tea tree oil. I would give it a pass for now.

Thanks for your feedback. It is a lot to consider. Don't want to make a bad situation worse.