15 W. Dry Creek Circle 6169 S. Balsam Way; Suite 290
Littleton, CO 80120-4427 Littleton, Colorado 80123
Phone: (303) 798-1309 Fax: (303) 798-2319
Ear, Nose & Throat Center
Specialists of the Ear, Nose and Throat / Head and Neck Surgery / Facial Plastic Surgery
Evaluation of Dizziness & Vestibular Disorders
For more information see us at our web site ! http://www.ENT Center.Net
Nasal Dryness; A Trigger To So Many Problems
Most people don't consider dry air a problem. Unfortunately it frequently is the first step in a cascade of events that can lead to chronic nasal congestion, nose bleeds, and sinusitis. To understand this more you need to understand how the nose works and what it is trying to accomplish.
The nose is more than a way to get air to your lungs. It has to accomplish many other tasks on the way to that air getting to your lungs. The nose is key in getting MOIST air to the lungs. The lungs are composed of very delicate membranes that exchange oxygen into the blood stream and allow carbon dioxide from the blood to pass back into the air so it can leave the body. To do that the lung membranes must be moist. Dry membranes can't dissolve these gases. Dry air in the lungs would dry out the lung membranes so the body must get the air moist before it gets into the lungs. The nose is the main method of doing this. In the nose are out-pouchings called turbinates. These are long 3 to 4 inch ridges that protrude into the nasal airway. They are lined by a very elastic and moist membrane that constantly secretes mucous and water. This moisture evaporates into the new incoming dry air and the air is moisturized passing on to the lungs. Ideally the nose doesn't have to work too hard if the air is already humidified. In addition, because the turbinates are moist and sticky any dust, dirt, pollen, bacteria, or viruses are filtered out of the air and adhere to the turbinates. Normally that is caught up in the mucous that is secreted. The nose is covered with fine small hairs called cilia that constantly push the mucous to the back of the nose. The mucous then drains down the back of the nose and is swallowed and digested in the stomach. The cilia work best with a humidity of 50%. If the humidity is less than 50% the cilia slow down and the mucous piles up and gets thick and incipated.
All of this in theory works well. However, living in Colorado and other dry states poses a problem for your nose. In the winter and summer the humidity is consistently low. If your air conditioner or heater is on it can drive the humidity even lower. The nose will eventually dry out and the mucous will become thick and ripe for infection. The nose mucosal lining will dry to point where the lining will crack and fissure. The nose mucosal lining is not like your outer skin, it is very thin and fragile. If a blood vessel is located at the position where it cracks from drying, it will bleed. This nose bleed is called epistaxis and it occurs more frequently in winter and summer.
The nose tries to protect itself from dry mucous build up and excessive drying of the mucosal lining. The way it does this is by causing the turbinates to swell; temporarily closing the nasal air passage. This allows the membranes to be cleaned and remoisturized. This occurs to a more minor degree on a daily basis as something called “nasal cycling”. If the humidity is over 50 % then most people never notice the nose getting blocked at all as the turbinates only swell moderately. Some people with other reasons for nasal passage way obstruction, such as a deviated nasal septum, nasal polyps, or a thin nose anatomy, become totally blocked even with this normal “nasal cycling”. If the room humidity is less than 50 % the turbinates can swell severely causing severe nasal congestion. This is why we recommend a humidifier to increase the moisture in the air where you work and sleep. A house furnace humidifier raises the humidity 10 or 20 % but because of the size of a full house it rarely can get the humidity close to 50%. We recommend a small vaporizer or humidifier in the bedroom when you are sleeping with the door and windows closed to keep the humidity in the room. We recommend a steam vaporizer in the winter to keep the room warm and more comfortable in the cold season. Use a cool mist vaporizer in the summer when it's hot. Try to get the humidity to 50 to 60 %. Clean the humidifier weekly to prevent mold or bacterial growth.
Thus, three problems can occur from chronic nasal dryness: 1.) sinusitis, 2.) epistaxis, and 3.) chronic nasal congestion. To prevent these from occurring you can do the following things:
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Use a humidifier or vaporizer where you sleep as noted above.. |
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During the day use nasal saline every one or two hours. These are available at most pharmacies as “Nasal", “Ayr” or "Ocean spray". Ask your pharmacist to show you where they are. You will not need a prescription for them. |
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Coating the inner lining of the nose to prevent evaporation of the nasal moisture will prevent drying and cracking of the nose. Use ointments such as ”Cortisporin”, “Neosporin”, “Polysporin”, or “Bacitracin”. Most of these can be purchased over the counter at most pharmacies. without a prescription. Apply this with a Q-tip for about one inch into the nose. Apply this at bedtime and in the morning. |
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Irrigate the nose with 50 to 100 cc's ( 3 to 4 ounces) of a saline solution using a baby bulb syringe or water pick. This removes dried secretions and filtered dust and particles from the nose decreasing the chance of a sinus infection. During allergy season it can remove allergens from the nose and help control allergies. It also restores moisture to the nose and normal mucous flow. This is not the most normal feeling maneuver to try but after you get the hang of it most people swear by it. We recommend this twice a day. It is also recommended after any dirty or dusty work where the nose may have become contaminated. |
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