Sinusitis causing Headache, Nausea, and Panda Eyes
May was a high school student. A week before she came into the clinic, she had seen several doctors for her headache and nausea. Unfortunately none could offer any improvement. At first, She thought it was caused by stress from her exams, but her symptoms remain unchanged after a couple days of rest.
Her face looked tired especially with the panda eyes. My first instinct suggested the possibility of long term allergic rhinitis. After in depth consultation regarding her medical history, she does in fact suffer from Atopic Dermatitis, a chronically relapsing inflammatory skin disease, and a recurring allergic rhinitis.
After further diagnosis, I found extensive thick yellow mucus inside her nose and face (triangular area under the eyes) pain when pressed. A possible result of allergic rhinitis with acute sinusitis.
With a prescription of 1-2 weeks of antibiotics and nasal decongestant, in combination with pulsatile nasal irrigation hydro therapy, May came back after 2 weeks, pain free.
Sinusitis has many varied symptoms including thick mucus, coughing, headache, face pain, loss of smell, fever, ear pain, ...etc. Although headache is a common symptom of emotional problem or stress among teenagers (and adults), it is also commonly experienced as a result of sinusitis. So if you experience headache in the future, try to find the root cause of your problem.