Frederick Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers helps provide sinus headache relief

Frederick Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers specializes in sinus headache relief, helping people experiencing sinus headaches due to inflamed sinuses.

The sinuses are air-filled spaces located inside the forehead, cheekbones and behind the bridge of the nose. 

They can become inflamed, often due to an allergic reaction or an infection, leading to a sinus headache. This makes them swell and produce more mucus and then the channels that drain them can get become clogged. That buildup of pressure in your sinuses can create pain that feels like a sinus headache.

This creates a deep and constant pain in the cheekbones, forehead or the bridge of the nose. The pain usually gets more intense with movement. At the same time, you might have other sinus symptoms, including a runny nose, feeling of fullness in the ears, fever and swelling in the face.

"It usually starts with a virus, which almost everyone gets, and then it can evolve into bacterial secondary recurrent infections, as well as chronic infections, which have specific criteria that you have to meet," Dr. Jamie Oberman said. "Your teeth hurt because the floor of the sinus, the maxillary sinus, is the roof of the mouth."

The goal is usually to relieve the symptoms and treat an infection. Antibiotics, as well as antihistamines or decongestants, are possible treatments. Inhaled nasal decongestants can also be used, but only for up to three days. Extended use can make the symptoms worse. 

Pain relievers can also be recommended for sinus headache relief, or if they don't help, a doctor can prescribe corticosteroids to ease the sinus headache. If an allergic reaction causes sinus flareups, a preventive allergy treatment might be needed. At-home tricks, such as drinking more fluids, using a humidifier or a saltwater nasal spray can also help. 

If decongestant and pain-relieving medicines are taken too often, it could lead to medication overuse headaches. Decongestants also can raise blood pressure, so people with high blood pressure should talk to their doctor before taking one. In some cases, doctors may recommend sinus surgery to remove polyps or open up small or constantly swollen sinuses.

If you think you might be suffering from sinus headaches, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz to evaluate your symptoms.

Frederick Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers is committed to providing the best sinus and allergy relief in Frederick and the surrounding area, using the most advanced, proven patient-friendly techniques available. With 29 million Americans suffering from sinusitis and 242,000 annual chronic sinusitis ER visits, our mission is to provide minimally invasive options for needed long-lasting relief so that patients can get back to living. We call this mission Breathe Free and Live Well, and it is the North Star that guides us in each unique collaborative patient interaction.