Painful sinus headaches can have 'significant impact' on a patient's life. | StockSnap/Pixabay
Painful sinus headaches can have 'significant impact' on a patient's life. | StockSnap/Pixabay
For many sufferers, sinus headaches are not only painful and hard to manage but also downright miserable. Especially when they don't go away despite attempts to treat what patients believe to be the root cause, allergies.
It's a familiar feeling for Doug Mandrick, a patient at Michigan ENT, who recalled missing a day of school each week when in middle school because of the severe congestion and headaches associated with his allergies.
"Chronic sinus infections can have a significant impact on our quality of life, from how we perform at work/school and interact with friends and family," Dr. Seth Palmer, a sinus specialist at Michigan ENT said in a release.
People with sinus headaches might feel as if their sinuses are infected, with pressure built up around their eyes and forehead, according to the Mayo Clinic. The Mayo Clinic says another sign of sinusitis, or a sinus headache, is a headache that intensifies when a person bends over or lays down.
The symptoms of sinusitis can also be confused for a migraine which is why, according to WebMD, it’s important to figure out what kind of headache you are experiencing so that the correct course of action can be taken to relieve your pain.
According to Dr. Palmer, more than 28.9 million people in the U.S. have endured sinus headaches, causing nearly 4.1 million trips to the doctor where the primary diagnosis was chronic sinusitis.
Chronic sinusitis can make it hard to enjoy everyday life. If you think a specialist could help, take this quiz.
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