Sinus Headache Symptoms

Headaches make life miserable. Headaches can be dull, sharp, sudden, persistent or throbbing. Some people may also experience pressure on the forehead as well. It is difficult to differentiate between headaches induced by inflamed sinus and migraine as both have facial pain associated with it. To be able to differentiate between different types of headache, you should know all about the symptoms of both conditions. In this article we will have a look at the symptoms of headaches caused by sinus inflammation.

Symptoms of Sinus Related Headache

Sinuses are actually air-filled sacks which are located in the forehead, cheekbones and behind the bridge of the nose. Sinus headaches are caused either due to allergies or sinus infection as the sinus channels are blocked and mucus produced in the sinuses is not drained out. Blockage of the sinus channels due to sinus infection is also called sinusitis. Now let's turn our attention to the symptoms.

• Symptoms include fever, yellow-green or blood tinged nasal discharge, fatigue and feeling of fullness in the ears.
• Very often, the person may experience tenderness of the skin and bones over as well as under the eyes.
• Facial tenderness is often accompanied by a dull headache.
• Pain and pressure around the forehead, cheeks and peri-orbital area is one of the chronic symptoms of inflamed or blocked sinuses.
• Symptoms worsen if a person bends down.
• In a number of cases it is seen, that the headache assumes monstrous proportions if the person lies down. This is basically the reason why the headache is unbearable early in the morning after waking up from sleep.
• Dizziness may also be seen in people who suffer from chronic sinusitis.
• If there is a sudden in change in temperature, the pain can worsen and become throbbing.
• The headache can also radiate to the back of the head as well as behind the ears and eyes. In some cases,. sinusitis can also cause tooth ache.
• The most common symptom is the pain which starts from around the eyes and gradually moves towards the temple.
• In case of chronic and extreme headache, the person may also experience blurred vision.
• If blowing your nose causes you more pain, then it is a symptom of sinusitis.
• If exercising, especially cardios, makes your headache go from bad to worse, then it is sign of sinusitis.

Treating Sinus Headache

The most important step is to treat the infection causing sinusitis. To treat the headache, there are anti-inflammatory medicines, decongestants and anti-histamines. If your headache is not due to sinusitis and you take decongestants, it will cause the headache to worsen. Hence, you should be sure that your headache is, indeed, caused by sinusitis before you zero in on the treatment. To relieve yourself of the headaches, you may want to take some pain killers. If the sinusitis is caused due to an allergy, an anti-allergen may be required.

Now let's see what some home remedies that are effective in relieving sinusitis symptoms, including the associated headache. Breathing moist air will help in relieving you of sinusitis, which, in turn, will relieve you of the headache. Taking a hot shower twice can also prove to be helpful. The other option is to take nasal steam. This can be done either with the nasal steamer or by boiling water in a large pan and taking steam from it. Do remember to cover your head with a towel, when you take steam from a pan. Cool mist humidifier is also beneficial for this condition. Applying hot and cold compress alternately can also help to relieve you of the blockage and headache. The method of applying hot and cold compress is : Apply hot compress for three minutes and then cold compress for thirty seconds on the sinuses. Applying these compresses at least thrice a day proves beneficial. Hot and spicy soups can also be taken to treat sinus problems. These soups act as decongestants and relieve the sinus blockages.

If your headache is throbbing, it is always good to let your healthcare professional assess if they are sinusitis symptoms or symptoms of some other underlying problem. If the headache is due to sinuses, with the help of home remedies, you will be able to get rid of the problem in a few days.