Symptoms and Complications
Sinusitis has symptoms very different from a cold or flu. The main symptoms
are pain, congestion, and a frontal headache. The location of the pain depends
on which sinus or sinuses are affected. Infection of the lower (maxillary)
sinuses causes toothache in the upper jaw and pain in the area under the eyes,
while infection of the upper (frontal) sinuses causes pain in the temple.
Infection of the small sinuses between the eyes (the ethmoid sinuses)
causes pain between and behind the eyes.
Yellow or green pus may drain out of the nose, and there may be an unpleasant
smell due to gases emitted by the bacteria. The sufferer may feel generally
unwell, but there shouldn't be a fever if the infection is confined to the sinuses.
Acute sinusitis usually lasts about two weeks. In a few people, however,
antibiotic treatment doesn't erase the bacteria immediately, and the infection
can go on for a few months. Such cases are called chronic sinusitis.