Hi,

I have dealt a lot with the sinus/migraine issue in dealing with my own headchaches. However, I am not a doctor, and this is for informational purposes only.

Basically, about five years ago, they found that what many people had attributed to sinus headache was largely migraine, about 85%. So treating headache as a headache is the first line of defense.

On the other hand, if migraine treatments do not help (in my case) then there are rare cases where sinus anomalies, such as septal spurs, contact points (between septum and turbinates) etc, can cause pain. Typically, sinus infections to not cause long lasting pain.

In my case, I had one area of pain that was caused by contact points that lay there happily touching for years until they were irritated by living in a rural area with pesticides and molds in the air.

I think it would be easy for a sinus infection to trigger migraines. However, if they are ongoing every day, she may wish to check for medication rebound issues. If one takes tylenol, aspirin, ibuprofen, triptans, etc. every day, one can end up with these medication, or drug induced rebound headaches. These headaches typically vary in area on the head.

Finally, I did find that my headaches were worsened by my holding tension in my facial muscles, and that I needed to remember to keep my face relaxed.

I also read on these boards once about a woman who swam every day, and had chronic headaches. When she rinsed her sinuses with saline after swimming each day, she finally had the solution. So, like the previous poster suggested, sensitivity to airborne particles or chemicals can cause "sinus" headaches.

Hope this helps. Its nice of you to take an interest in her health. However, she may know more than you think!

Lara