Chronic sinusitis
If an ER doc or primary-care physician diagnoses you with chronic sinusitis, you’ll want to get a second opinion from an ENT. According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, more than 99 percent of patients diagnosed with this condition by a non-ENT didn’t actually have it.
While characterized by the same thick yellow or green mucus, facial pressure, and congestion you get with an acute sinus infection, chronic sinusitis lasts for more than three months, requires an endoscopy or CT scan to diagnose, and calls for different treatment, including a longer course of antibiotics and possibly oral steroids. Or, it may not be sinusitis at all: It could be a viral infection, an allergy or even a migraine or tension headache.
