Is it a coincidence that you get a spring cold every year that you just can’t shake? Probably not. The problem of course is that the symptoms of a sinus cold, sinus infection and an allergy can be very similar.

Inflammation of the sinuses, or sinusitis, results in almost 12 million visits to a doctor in the US alone. Sinusitis can be debilitating; it’s not just the pain and congestion in the sinuses, but also the loss of sleep from congested nasal passages. The condition can be the result of allergies, viral infection or bacterial infection.

How do you know what you have? With the typical cold, the runny nose and other symptoms will run their course in a week to 10 days. If you’re dealing with a bacterial sinus infection, the symptoms will actually worsen, resulting in mucus that thickens and discolours as well as pain around the eyes, nose and sometimes forehead.  This can be a late complication of a viral cold.

If you are dealing with allergies, the symptoms will disappear when you are away from the allergen. Another clue that it’s allergies? The symptoms don’t resolve in 7-10 days, but persist. You should also pay attention to whether your “cold” occurs at the same time every year. This could indicate a seasonal allergy that reoccurs each year as your particular allergen begins its pollination period.

So, how does a cold stack up against allergies? Here’s a quick reference chart that compares the symptoms of a cold with the symptoms of a seasonal allergy: