Given your nose鈥檚 front-and-center position on your face, it can be susceptible to injuries. Nose and nasal injuries can range from minor ones that can be treated at home to more serious issues that require professional medical treatment. Understanding how to properly treat your nose injury can make a huge difference in how quickly you recover.
Causes of a Nose Injury
The most common reason for a nose injury is trauma, usually from the following instances:
- Sports-related injuries (the most common)
- Falls
- Car accidents
- Work-related accidents
- Physical violence
Is My Nose Broken?
A broken nose isn鈥檛 always obvious, so knowing what type of injury you may have can help you make the best decisions about caring for it.
Fractures: A nasal fracture, or broken nose, is the most common type of facial fracture and varies in severity. It involves a break or crack in the bones or cartilage of your nose and can cause pain, swelling, bruising, bleeding, difficulty breathing through your nostrils, or a misshapen nose.
Nasal Contusions: Since some fractures are minor, it鈥檚 not always clear if you have broken your nose or if you have a nasal contusion or bruised nose. Pain, bruising, swelling, and bleeding can happen after experiencing trauma to the nose, even if there are no broken bones.
However, some key signs can help you differentiate between a nasal contusion or minor fracture and a more severe fracture needing medical attention.
鈥淢ost nasal bone fractures that require treatment are also associated with a substantial nose bleed, and that鈥檚 one of the hints that we use to guide us in terms of whether or not someone has broken their nose,鈥 says Kristine Smith, MD, an otolaryngologist at 人妻中出视频 of Utah 人妻中出视频. 鈥淲e also look for things like a significant deformity of the nose and something called a septal hematoma, which can lead to significant healing problems down the road for patients.鈥
Septal Hematoma: Septal hematomas occur following a severe nasal injury and result from blood accumulation around the septum.
鈥淚f a patient is feeling like they鈥檙e nose is totally blocked, we鈥檒l look into the nose and it will look like there鈥檚 a cherry inside of the nostrils,鈥 Smith says.
Failing to medically treat a septal hematoma can lead to permanent nose deformities, chronic nasal blockage, and risk of infection.
Deviated Septum: A deviated septum is characterized by the wall dividing the nostrils being displaced to one side, causing difficulty breathing through the nose. While some people are born with this condition, it can also result from severe nasal injury.
First Aid for a Nose Injury
You can take steps at home to care for a nose injury before determining if professional care is needed.
Start by applying firm pressure on the nose to stop bleeding. The following tips can help get bleeding under control:
- Pinch the lowest part of your nose, holding the nostrils completely shut.
- Lean your head forward. Tilting it backwards can cause blood to run down your throat.
- If bleeding continues after 10 minutes of applying pressure, administer three to four sprays of a nasal decongestant to help form a clot in the area and stop the bleeding. Seek medical care if it still doesn鈥檛 stop.
TIP: Never attempt to put the bones back in place yourself, as you risk repositioning them incorrectly. See a doctor in a timely manner if you suspect a more serious injury.
鈥淭he bones in your face start to lock themselves back into place within about 10 to 14 days of the injury, so if you have a deformity, you really need to see someone that can help put those bones in place within that time frame,鈥 Smith says. 鈥淥therwise, you miss the window for us to put the bones back where they belong, and that usually means you need to wait at least a year before you could have surgery to re-break the nose and put them where they鈥檙e supposed to be.鈥