diff --git a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/syncapi/sync/requestpool.go b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/syncapi/sync/requestpool.go
index 548703738..3e1c92e9b 100644
--- a/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/syncapi/sync/requestpool.go
+++ b/src/github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/syncapi/sync/requestpool.go
@@ -86,33 +86,37 @@ func (rp *RequestPool) OnIncomingSyncRequest(req *http.Request, device *authtype
 	userStreamListener := rp.notifier.GetListener(*syncReq)
 	defer userStreamListener.Close()
 
-	select {
-	// Wait for notifier to wake us up
-	case <-userStreamListener.GetNotifyChannel(currPos):
-		currPos = userStreamListener.GetStreamPosition()
-	// Or for timeout to expire
-	case <-timer.C:
-		// We just need to ensure we get out of the select after reaching the
-		// timeout, but there's nothing specific we want to do in this case
-		// apart from that, so we do nothing.
-	// Or for the request to be cancelled
-	case <-req.Context().Done():
-		return httputil.LogThenError(req, req.Context().Err())
-	}
+	for {
+		select {
+		// Wait for notifier to wake us up
+		case <-userStreamListener.GetNotifyChannel(currPos):
+			currPos = userStreamListener.GetStreamPosition()
+		// Or for timeout to expire
+		case <-timer.C:
+			// We just need to ensure we get out of the select after reaching the
+			// timeout, but there's nothing specific we want to do in this case
+			// apart from that, so we do nothing.
+		// Or for the request to be cancelled
+		case <-req.Context().Done():
+			return httputil.LogThenError(req, req.Context().Err())
+		}
 
-	// Note that we don't time out during calculation of sync
-	// response. This ensures that we don't waste the hard work
-	// of calculating the sync only to get timed out before we
-	// can respond
+		// Note that we don't time out during calculation of sync
+		// response. This ensures that we don't waste the hard work
+		// of calculating the sync only to get timed out before we
+		// can respond
 
-	syncData, err = rp.currentSyncForUser(*syncReq, currPos)
-	if err != nil {
-		return httputil.LogThenError(req, err)
-	}
+		syncData, err = rp.currentSyncForUser(*syncReq, currPos)
+		if err != nil {
+			return httputil.LogThenError(req, err)
+		}
 
-	return util.JSONResponse{
-		Code: http.StatusOK,
-		JSON: syncData,
+		if !syncData.IsEmpty() {
+			return util.JSONResponse{
+				Code: http.StatusOK,
+				JSON: syncData,
+			}
+		}
 	}
 }