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Sinus headaches: Symptoms, diagnosis and treatment

Sinus Headache

Sinus headache is caused due to inflammation or clogging of sinuses. This kind of headache is a vibrating pain that is felt by patients in their facial nerves. They feel a sort of pressure on their face. Sinus pain can be very severe in some cases and may seem a tough task to cure. Many controversies are seen in this concern. Sometimes patients suffering from sinus disorders do not take it seriously and create more troubles for them in the forthcoming time. There are other people who do take an ordinary headache and facial vibration to be a symptom of sinus pain. Most sinus disorders are related to continuous and deep pain in the forehead, cheek bone and nostril. The pain starts with sudden or unexpected jarring in the head. Patients suffering from this kind of headache also experience irritation and soaring in their throat. They discharge yellowish or pale green colored fluid from their nose. They also feel fatigued after short physical or mental workouts.

Symptoms

Sinus headaches have many symptoms depending on level of pain intensity. The most important symptom of sinus pain is pressure and pain around sinus tissues of the face. This pain also extends to the eyes, forehead and the area surrounding the cheeks. The pain is felt even more, if the patient does any body movement like lying or bending. Mere pain in the face and forehead is not only the symptom. Many patients do not feel so much pain at all. Yet they have sinus disorder which is characterized by fever, fatigue, cough, soreness in throat, stuffiness in the nose and thick yellowish discharge from nostrils. Patients with sinus disorder suffer from pain during cough and cold. The symptoms of sinus are also confirmed by doctors by magnetic resonance imaging and CT scans.

Diagnosis

Patients suffering from sinus pain need to be alert. They are recommended to investigate the actual factor behind sinus pain. Health surveys report says that among 100 persons 90 suffer from migraine and take it as sinus disorders. For this reason, diagnosis is very necessary. Less people are actually seen to have sinus headache, however, they need to take care about it. Ignoring initial symptoms of sinus can lead to development of severe trouble. The most common method to diagnose sinus headache is making a correct physical examination.

Pain do occur even in case of migraine. Even headaches due to stress and mental tension can cause pain. It is essential for the doctor and the patient to know and detect symptoms of sinus headaches. Acute sinus pain is generally caused by virus and bacteria. For this reason, it is called viral or bacterial sinus. It is diagnosed by CT scan. If a sinus headache is more than 8 weeks then it is known as chronic sinus. It is diagnosed through nasal endoscopy. Biopsy has also been found to be effective in diagnosing sinus pain.

Treatment

Many common medication techniques have been devised by doctors to counteract the effect of sinus headaches:

1. Counter sinus pain relievers

Many medications act as counter pain relievers. Aleve, advil and tylenol are effective sinus pain relieving medications. They should not be used for more than 10 days. And above all, these medications should be used under recommendation of a doctor.

2. Inhaled steroids

Steroids for inhalation help to remove congestion. They eventually reduce sinus pain.

3. Decongestants

OTC medicines are often referred as decongestants. They remove the swelling in nostrils and eliminate mucus from nasal track. Most decongestants are available in the form of nasal sprays. They should be used for a minimum 3 days. These decongestant sprays should not be used for more than 7 days.

4. Keeping moistness in nasal track

Using a vaporizer or humidifier is the best way to maintain moistness in the nasal passage. Saline solutions can also be used for creating moistness in the nasal track. This remedy helps to bring down the level of nasal pain during sinus disorder.

5. Using nasal lavage or irrigation

Nasal irrigation is done with the help of a bulb syringe. The syringe flushes salt water through the nasal track and cleans mucus from it.

6. Stop use of irritants

Cigarettes and some chemical substances create inflammation in the nasal track. These should be avoided to cure sinus pain effectively.

7. Antibiotics

Majority of sinus headaches are being cured by doctors through antibiotic medicines. These medications work very effectively in curing viral and bacterial sinuses. The doctor diagnoses the sinus pain and observes it for 10 days. If the pain is not relieved through common remedies during this period then antibiotics are prescribed. Some common antibiotic drugs used by doctors in curing sinus headache are augmentin, amoxicillin and doxycycline.

8. Surgery

Curing sinus pain through surgery is the final option. It is recommended by doctors when all common remedies fail. Surgery is also done when sinus pain becomes acute and lot mucus gets accumulated in the nasal track. Maxillary antral is a very common surgery, it involves puncture of sinus and flushing it with saline solution to clear out mucus. Surveys indicate that maxillary antral washout is more beneficial than taking antibiotics. Endoscopic sinus surgery is another powerful remedy; it removes anatomical hindrances in the sinuses. The chief advantage of endoscopic sinus surgery is that it reduces disruption of tissues in the sinuses.

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