CRS can cause different problems. These symptoms are not the same for everyone and can change over time. To have CRS, you need to have at least two symptoms that last 12 weeks in a row without getting better. These symptoms can include:
Stuffy or blocked nose which may make it hard to breathe through the nose
Mucus that drips out of your nose (runny nose) or drips down the back of your throat (postnasal drip)
Difficulties smelling things
Pain in your face or headache
Facial pain or headache without nasal symptoms is not a sign of CRS.
Apart from the typical symptoms, you might also notice:
These symptoms can make it hard to sleep. If you don’t sleep well, you might feel very tired during the day. This can make school, work, or daily tasks harder. If you feel like CRS impacts your mental health (feeling anxious, depressed, or makes it hard to enjoy things), do talk about it with your doctor.
It is important to know that lingering symptoms are not normal and can often be improved with the right treatment. If you are worried about your symptoms, do not hesitate to reach out to your doctor. CRS is not “a common cold that just won’t clear”.
Apart from long-lasting symptoms, there can also be signs that mean you need help quickly. These are called red-flag symptoms and mean you need to see a doctor right away. They include:
In rare cases, serious infections in your sinuses can spread to other parts of your body. If an infection spreads to an eye it can lead to vision problems. In rare cases, a sinus infection can also spread to the brain (causing brain abscesses or meningitis), skin (cellulitis) or bone (osteomyelitis).
People with CRS often have other conditions, called comorbidities. These are diseases that occur together with CRS and may lead to other symptoms.
One important thing to understand is that CRS can affect your lungs. If you have trouble breathing, coughing, wheezing, or tightness in your chest, you must tell your doctor. These could be signs of asthma, which often happens alongside sinus issues. Asthma is a condition where the airways in your lungs become narrow and make breathing difficult. Similar to CRS, it involves long-lasting inflammation.
In addition to asthma, CRS patients are more likely to experience other conditions, including:
These and other conditions might warrant further investigations by other specialists, like a lung specialist, eye specialist, allergologist, dermatologist, neurologist, dentist, or psychiatrist.
Managing these conditions alongside CRS improves your overall health and can help you manage CRS. If you suspect you have any of these, it is important to discuss them with your doctor.
Be sure to stay tuned as an entire module on asthma will be the next condition that we launch later this year on EUFOREA’s Patient Portal.
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