Extreme Sinus Pressure and imbalance

A couple of month ago I began experiencing sinus pressure build up and awoke in the middle of the night to the room spinning. I went to an ENT where he diagnosed BPPV (Vertigo) and performed a procedure which seemed to eliviate the problem.  

However, over the last couple of months I have been enduring bouts of intense sinus pressure accompanied by mild to moderate of case of equilibrium imbalance (but nothing to the point of the vertigo episode). As pressure increases so does my imbalance in my equilibrium.

I touch the top of my head and feel the frontal sinus passages wanting to explode. I went to an ENT who ran sinus CT Scan which came up mostly negative aside slight mucus build up. A touch to the forontal passages and my ears want to explode. Aside from daily doses of Nasonex, which don't appear to be working is there

I went to another general doctor who ran blood test, carotid doppler test, ekg  head CT scan of the head which all came back negative.  There doesn't appear to be an sever sinus infection but could sinus pressure build up arise from some type of on-going irritation in the environment?Aside from daily doses of Nasonex, which don't appear to be working!  Could the vertigo diagnosis go in hand with the sinus pressure build up??? Looking for relief.

[stormigrl]

I have ear, nose and throat redness and experiencing dizzy spells and blurred vision.
I just got told today by the doc that it's vertigo. I'm no doctor, but he's put me on Nasacort Nasal Spray (you have to get a prescription from the doc).  It's very different from otrivin, so don't use that unless your doc says to.

I didn't do a blood test, but I did get blood pressure tested (it came back normal), My eye test passed, but saw double vision the last few days, so a bit concerned about that thing too.

Sinus pressure can lead to many different things and it being Fall/Autumn whatever you call it, Hayfever and all the lovely molds and mildews are coming now. Blah.
Feels like a cold but its allergies.

By Chance have you seen an allergist? It could be a type of allergy to food or something in the environment. Just wondering. Sinus blockage could be with anything really.

My vertigo has gone hand in hand with sinus pressure according to my doc diagnoses today, and it included dizzy spells and light headedness and migrained and much more.
I even have double vision for some weird reason and I wear glasses, thought it was time for new check up, but the doc assured me that its vertigo. (first time with vertigo and wish I never had it).

Has the doc tried to give you Nasacort? Just wondering. I'm on it right now for Vertigo.
(My balance is off too)

Hope you find the answer you are looking for and Relief as well.

[Tazmanian]

Thanks for the post. First, sorry for not responding to your post sooner  as this week has been horrible (I'm in the process of moving to another home) and the sinus pressure along with the vertigo seems to correspond with stress. Also, sorry about the typos and misspells (you can see this was not a very good day for me).  

Second what is otrivin used to treat????  You must be reading my mind, I too was thinking about seeing an allergist.  I live in deep south Texas and we have around a million types of plants all of which may be causing the severe sinue pressure which turn causes my imbalance in equilibrium. I'm going to take a hearing test soon and thereafter.

I'm currently on meclizine for the vertigo/imbalance but can only take it at night good thing 'cos it knocks me out (good thing though). I start off ok in the a.m. but as the day wears on the pressure and vertigo appears to get worse.

Thanks for sharing and any information you can provide is greatly appreciated. Keep in touch.

Looking for answers in Laredo, Texas.

[spikoli]

    I have been going through some of the same things and I pretty much had to diagnose my self and I have come to the conclusion that I have Meniere's Disease. Which is treatable with drugs and or surgery. I hope this helps

[sirjoseph]

same symptoms here.  the dizziness and balance problems and pressure on top of the head etc. ( i think the sinuses that run along the skull to the back of the head) all i can offer is online support sorry

[Enoch Choi, MD]

stormigrl has a good point to go see an allergist

the procedure you probably got for BPV was an epley's maneuver to reposition the canaliths in the ear.

see the ENT again, sometimes the maneuver has to be repeated.

[kristin1984]

I had been through hell lately. First off I am 8 mos pregnant now. The problems started 3mos ago where my right side of face went numb, lost right vision somewhat (tunnel vision and seeing spots from my right eye), lost hearing from my right ear and ended up in the hospital weak and vomiting profusly. They did a CT but my concern was that it was without dye. I have been trying to hang in there until I have the baby but now it is getting bad again. I start spinning, lose train of thought, have pressure on the right side of my head and especially right over top of my right ear. It almost feels like there is water in my ear but they were checked and all was well. Every now and then I have ear pains and my right eye gets a sharp pain in it. The pressure in my head makes it feel like it's going to explode...Could all this be sinusitis or am I crazy to wonder if it's a tumor?? I feel like something is terribly wrong but can't get proper help being pregnant....HELP please!

[trexy]

hi..im trexy!!!

I also experienced what you are experiencing right now!!! Till now i still have this sinus pressure without mucus, then feeling imbalance, vertigo(standing  and lying).

This has bee a year now, still not cured. Hope we can find solution on this. GOd Willing!!!

[Gustav85]

Well, i'm a one whos had a nasty living this year, all the problems no muscus from nose, bloody lining of nose, facial swelling and above all MAJOR ear pain and cracking...

Conclusions:
1. All this can be caused be severely irritiated nasal/sinus cavities...if they restrict so much from being dry during allgeries seasons they block sinuses (infectioncomes about because baterial likes being sealed inside), then causing severe negative ear pressure...so its Nasal block leads to Sinus Block Leads to Ear Effusion or negative ear problems which incudes ear popping and hearing loss (usally one ear more than the other since no air can reach here because of the nasal/sinus blockage) usally people with deviated septums, enlarged turbines and disformities of nasal cavities can have a problem become chronic, and anti-botics and anti-inflammatory drugs will no longer work because of the severeity of it, the baterial prevents it from openning and keeping the nasal passages blocked altogether casuing these major major problems for everyone out there, so in some cases best to get nasal surgrey to rid of these problems, this depends on your cases....

[BRANDY82375]

I was recently diagnosed with Meniere's disease, which is most commonly characterized by extreme bouts of dizziness. Luckily, I've only experienced mild dizziness and not that frequently. My problem is I have constant pressure in my head, face and ears. Right now I am fighting off an ear infection. The pressure is so enourmous at times that I'm afraid my eardrum will burst. I've been given an antibiotic and a an antihistamine. They seemed to be working well but then all of the sudden the pain came on worse than ever. The area on my face beside my ear and under my ear has become very tender, swollen and hard. Oh, and my ears have popped for years, every time I swallow but now it's really bad. They've always rang and now the ringing's worse. Anyway, my question is is anyone familiar with Meniere's and if so does my pain and pressure problem sound like a symptom? Thanks so much!

[jmbirds]

Ok i recommend you go see a chiropractor , it can't hurt and you might feel human again if you have swelling from allergies, i always find the chiro makes my nose run after an adjustment of my neck Ahh i can breath without a headache now they can use an activator which is pressure point type adjustment or they can do a massage or hand manipulation i like all of it so i just had an allergic reaction to a sterioid for my shoulder injury and i got sicker then a frog in a blender standing at the RX counter i was a walking wet noodle i had to keep my eye closed to stop the spinning i got my barrings enough to go to the ER they put me on meclzine for vertigo that messes me up FOR 12 hrs an i took it at 7pm 25 mg so that little pill is too much for me well i went back to the CHIRO and said fix my neck this was nuts , so we all have terrible posture  now sitting at desks and PC and lifting and bending work sneezing and coughing  we throw our necks out of alignment and e nd up with sinus congestion and more happy to share more EAT horseradish  cheese i swear it keeps my pressure stablized , enviromental allergiees food allergies and animal allergies i cn't win i'm on rhinocort nose spray if that helps you?

[maggie0416]

I have been dealing with extreme dizziness for going on 6 weeks now. I notice that when the pressure builds up in my face, the dizziness gets worse. I don't have any sinus drainage, my ears dont hurt, or any typical allergy feelings. It's just extreme pressure in my forehead and nose area. kind of like the sinus area. sometimes it feels like my whole head is going to explode. my doctor gave me meclizine but i dont want to take it cause i'm on heart meds, insulin, and bp meds so i've just been suffering thru it. sometimes its so bad, i cant even drive or funtion. does anyone have any sugguestions as to what i have and a home cure to help with the dizziness and pressure.

thanks,

maggie

[Peanut726]

I have dealt with BPPV and sinus pressure for 26 years - it is a pain in the you know where.  Been to a million doctors.  I know that my problem is not only severe allergies, but I also suffer from anxiety.  I obsess about this, and it truly makes it a lot worse.  If I slow down, take some deep breaths, it gets better.  It is sad to read so many stories of the misery people endure.  I, too, feel that  misery.  I keep telling myself "so many people are dying of things and this will not kill me - but the anxiety can."  It makes me relax.  I think vertigo problems can be a result of extreme tension in your jaws and neck.  I think we all need to relax.  Meclizine has been of great help to me as well.  Xanax, too.  Hate to take drugs, but we can't always control our bodies as we would like.  Exercise is of great help - I am a runner, and when I miss a day of physical activity, my symptoms are worse.  Sometimes the symptoms go away for months and years, but when they come back, I try to prepare myself and stay very active.

[BJGP]

Well, I read all these and see things in common with you all.  I wake up with vertigo.  I have pressure in my right sinus with no drainage.  I have anxiety.  I went to the ear, nose and throat doctor who said it may be Benign positional vertigo but when they did the testing and I went back later they changed their minds because they didn't see it in my eyes the day after I said I had more vertigo.  My allergist said it wouldn't be from allergies.  The neurologist said my MRI was normal.  The chiropractor did adjustments that didn't help and said he noticed most of his patients with vertigo also had allergy trouble.  My regular doctor gives me antibiotics and meclizine.  The spinal doctor wanted to give me a shot in the neck but I did not want to try that.  I don't want to go under anesthesia because I'm worried I'll have vertigo and not be able to wake up.  It's so frustrating and depressing.

[tasmanian]

Update:

After 2008 after seing Neurologist, ENT's and general pratitioners  my symptoms worsened to the point I was barely functioning.  My imbalance and vertigo got worse and sinuses felt like they were going to explode,  I was barely living and wanted my life back.  I couldn't walk a straight line if I wanted to.  The headaches got worse to the point where it affected my normal daily routine including working out (I was a gyn rat).  All I wanted was my life back.

After my last post in April, 2007 it took almost another year to diagnostics. All CT Scans, blood work, MRI, carotid doppler, heart monitoring, hearing tests etc.. I  finally saw a otoneurologist/neurotologist in San Antonio, Texas beforeI was finally diagnosed with Meinere's Disease.

To make a long story short my otoneurologist was a life saver.  After more additional test this man gave me my life back to a great degree.  I've been on diuretics and excercises which seems work and help me manage my imbalance and heaches.  My vertigo attacks are almost totally gone and are to a much lesser degree.  I know this disease is progressive in most cases but I really belief it is a matter of postive attitude.  Since I never took meclizine for an extended period of time, my doctor states that may have assisted by balance systme to compensate for the detrioration in my right ear.  

Although there are days when my headaches, pressure and balance are out of kilter, it seems to be only when I'm stress or there is a drastic change in temp. barameter pressure and.  There is hope but you need to get to the right doctor who has experience in this type of disease.  Thanks for everyone's input.

[knhiller]

I am having the exact same issues as you all have explained above. I feel like my head is about to explode. I feel terrible all the time. I have been to an ENT and he is now requesting a CT scan although most of you said it showed nothing... I am expecting the same. Can you all provide a list of your final diagnosis so I know what the possibilities are?

[turkee23]

i would like to know that answer too

[Msellie14]

Question:
I have been suffering with headaches for 2 months now they start out with pain under my eyes and finally end up in the back of my head always in the afternoon around 2:00 pm. A lot of pressure in my head and when I am driving and I go over hills or around curves the pain is worse and feels like a shifting in my head. Could this be a sinus problem?  Has anyone else ever experienced this?

Thanks
Virginia

[falimetar]

Incredible. So many people are experiencing the same symptoms like me and all the tests (ORL, CT, blood pressure, sinuses endoscopy...) seem to be negative. I have been visiting doctors for two months, got a lot of antibiotics, but dizziness, pain and pressure in sinuses, and behind the eyes get worse. When I asked all the doctors could it be fungal sinusitis, all of them replied very firmly: No, it should have been noticed on CT and through the endoscopy of sinuses. Then I started to search for the answers on the net and found out that the researches at Mayo clinic discovered (in 1999) that 96% of all chronic sinusitis is of fungal origin. The reaction of the organism is auto-immune: some blood cells (eosinophilles, or so) are attacking the fungi and by doing so they release neuro-toxines which cause irritation and inflamation (inflammation) of sinuses. So the doctors at Mayo are making some antifungal solution for nasal irrigation, and it may be helpful. The researches has also shown that such irritation of the sinuses may not be seen on CT. Of course, I may be 100 pct wrong since I am not a doctor, but the doctors are not helping me so far. Unfortunately I live in Croatia and can't get this sort of medication. You guys in the States can get it (in form of nasal sprays, or irrigation solution) - but only if your physician prescribes them. (e,g, Anazao is the laboratory who prepares such antifugnals). By the way, steroid nasal spray like Nasonex start helping only after a month or a month and a half.
Be persistent and patient.
all the best Falimetar from Cro.

[cinderella66]

I have the nasal pressure with no drainage also but my dizziness is so bad that if I walk for a while I actually vomit.  I have no appetite and can't work feeling this way.  I have been seeing an ENT and had a CT scan today but now that I hear some of you he is probably going to find nothing on it.  I feel like I am going nuts.  Can anyone give me some encouraging news?

[rrads]

Keep the crushed garlic pod for five minutes in each nostril and sneez out fully.  Do neti pot and sutra neti every day.  you can watch out on youtube.  
Keep the  vibration belt with magnets on your cheeks  for five minutes every day ,which is available in the market.  Do breathing for 10 minutes /thrice a day.  I am not a doctor.  i am also a sinus patient, after trying out all the medicines finally i could get relief after following the above things.  Try out  after consulting your doctor and do let me know how it feels.