About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffSinus headache signs and symptoms may include:
- Pain, pressure and fullness in your cheeks, brow or forehead
- Pain may worsen when bending forward or lying down
- Yellow-green or blood-tinged nasal discharge
- Sore throat
- Fever
- Cough
- Fatigue
- Achy feeling in your upper teeth
Sinus headache or migraine?
It's important to note that it's possible to confuse migraines and sinus headaches. This is because the signs and symptoms of the two types of headaches overlap. Studies have shown that 90 percent of those with "sinus headaches" actually have migraines.
As with sinus headaches, migraine pain often gets worse when you bend forward, and migraines can be accompanied by various nasal signs and symptoms — including congestion, facial pressure and a clear, watery nasal discharge.
Sinus headaches, however, usually aren't associated with nausea or vomiting, or aggravated by noise or bright light — all common features of migraines.
When to see a doctor
Consult your doctor if:
- Your symptoms last longer than 10 days
- You have a severe headache, and over-the-counter pain medicine doesn't help
- You have a fever greater than 100.5 F (38 C)
- Bajwa ZH, et al. Headache symptoms other than migraine. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Dec. 15, 2009.
- Hwang PH, et al. Acute sinusitis and rhinosinusitis in adults. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Dec. 15, 2009.
- Sinus headaches. American Academy of Otolaryngology — Head and Surgery. http://www.entnet.org/HealthInformation/sinusHeadache.cfm. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Sinus infection (sinusitis). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/getsmart/antibiotic-use/URI/sinus-infection.html. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Sinusitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec08/ch091/ch091g.html?qt=sinus headache&alt=sh. Accessed Dec. 16, 2009.
- Sinus headache. National Headache Foundation. http://www.headaches.org/education/Headache_Topic_Sheets/Sinus_Headache. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Headache and sinus disease. American Rhinologic Society. http://www.american-rhinologic.org/patientinfo.headache.phtml. Accessed Dec. 17, 2009.
- Swanson JW (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Dec. 23, 2009.
- Schreiber CP, et al. Prevalence of migraine in patients with a history of self-reported or physician-diagnosed "sinus" headache. Archives of Internal Medicine. 2004;164:1769.
Find Mayo Clinic on