How to Treat Nasal Polyps
Nasal polyps are an inflammation of the lining of the nose. Nasal polyps may also be an inflammation of the lining of the sinuses as well. What this inflammation is attributed to is not known, but it can cause mild to serious health problems and should be treated right away.
Instructions
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Treat Nasal Polyps Effectively
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Identify your condition as nasal polyps first. Nasal polyps are soft protrusions caused by an inflammation of the lining of the nose or sinus. You may notice a single bump or many. The more nasal polyps you have, the more potential harm can be done due to airway obstruction.
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Notice the symptoms you'll want to treat. Common symptoms of nasal polyps include loss of sense of smell, repeated sinus infections, runny nose, headache and stuffy nose. Notice how similar these symptoms are to hayfever to avoid being misdiagnosed.
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Treat nasal polyps with a steroid nasal spray. The steroid acts as an anti-inflammatory and will help you breath better while shrinking the size of the polyps.
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Talk to your pharmacist about medications like Flonase, Nasonex and Rhinocort. These are the brand names of the most common nasal polyp treatment sprays and they are available at most pharmacies.
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Watch out for side effects from steroid sprays that can include a sore throat or a nose bleed.
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Try an oral steroid. According to the Mayo Clinic, oral steroids can help but there is an increased risk of potentially dangerous side effects so there use is limited and they should only be taken for a very short time (see Resources below).
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Know that in some cases, surgery may be required to treat nasal polyps. Surgery will only be used as a last resort when medications fail, but there are times when a doctor will think it best to surgically remove nasal polyps.
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Tips & Warnings
Due to the similarity of symptoms, many people misdiagnose nasal polyps as hayfever. In order to treat then effectively, it is critical to know what you are dealing with. Talk to your doctor if your symptoms do not clear up.
While nasal polyps are typically not dangerous, in some cases they can swell up enough to restrict your breathing and in a few rare cases they've even been known to be visible from the outside.
