CAUSES

Minor illnesses are the most common causes of nasal congestion or nasal block. For instance, a cold, the flu, and sinus infections can all cause stuffy noses. Illness-related congestion usually improves within one week.

Nasal congestion or nasal block causes include:

• A Virus. The viruses that cause the common cold or flu often enter the body directly through your nose. Once there, they begin to multiply inside the lining of your nasal passages. The body’s response to the infection leads to inflammation that brings nasal congestion.
• Allergies. If you experience certain allergies, you may find that your nose is frequently stuffy. Certain triggers, such as dust, pollen, and pet dander, can cause an allergic response, which causes swelling of your nasal tissues and leads to nasal congestion.

If it lasts longer than one week, it’s often a symptom of an underlying health issue. Some explanations for long-term nasal congestion may be:

• hay fever
• noncancerous growths, called nasal polyps, or benign tumors in the nasal passages
• chemical exposures
• environmental irritants
• a long-lasting sinus infection, known as chronic sinusitis
• a deviated septum
• Swollen adenoid glands
• Injuries to the nose
• Foreign bodies in the nose
• Rebound congestion after stopping decongestant medication
• Bronchiolitis
• Medications (Overuse of Some Decongestant Sprays or Drops)
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (theorized to cause chronic rhinosinusitis- the airway reflux paradigm)
• Other Viral Infections

Nasal congestion or nasal block may also occur during pregnancy, usually during the end of the first trimester. Hormonal fluctuations and increased blood supply that occur during pregnancy may cause this nasal congestion or nasal block.

These changes may affect the nasal membranes, causing them to become inflamed, dry, or to bleed.

SYMPTOMS OF NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK

• sinus pain and pressure
• Headache
• stuffy or runny nose
• experience pressure across your cheeks or other areas of your face.

RISK FACTORS

The risk factors for nasal obstruction relate directly to the underlying etiology. Several common risk factors for nasal congestion or nasal block includes:

• history of atopy,
• recurrent sinusitis,
• nasal trauma,
• nasal surgery,
• having household pets,
• exposure to poor air quality,
• family history of nasal polyposis.

Nasal obstruction commonly accompanies many other comorbid conditions including asthma and obstructive sleep apnea

DIAGNOSIS

Doctors diagnose nasal congestion or nasal block based on your symptoms and a physical exam. Your doctor will examine your nose, ears and throat to determine the cause of the congestion.

Doctors may examine your nose using a flexible light called an endoscope. Sometimes, a CT scan is required if a physical obstruction is observed or suspected.

In rare cases, a doctor may use tests including an X-ray or throat culture (test to examine substances in the back of the throat) to rule out other medical issues that could be causing the congestion.

PREVENTION

• Keep your distance : Limit your contact with people who are sick. Wash your hands often with soap and water — especially before you eat.
• Irrigate your no : Keep your nostrils moist with frequent use of saline sprays or washes.
• Check your indoor air flow : Use a humidifier in your home if you have forced-air heat – the moisture helps mucus drain more effectively. But clean the humidifier often to protect against mold and other allergens.
• Open the windows : Ventilate your house on days when the pollen count isn’t high. Stale air aggravates sinus problems.
• Increase your hydration : Drink 8 to 10 glasses of water or fruit juice to lubricate your throat and keep mucus thin. Avoid alcohol and caffeine because they will dehydrate you.
• Conserve your energy : Your body needs to get well — rest at least eight hours a day. Stay in bed or nap. Try lying down on your side or prop yourself up with a pillow to breathe easier.
• Stay on top of allergy care : If you have allergies, avoid exposure to your trigger substances and try to manage your allergies as best as possible.
• Avoid harsh fumes : Exposure to cigarette and cigar smoke and strong odors from chemicals can irritate and inflame nasal passages.
• Be aware of pressure cooker conditions : You may notice pain in your head and nasal area during extreme changes in air pressure or temperature. (Not the best time for airplane travel!)
• Find over-the-counter sinus-infection relief : When you have a cold you may want to take a decongestant and pain reliever for sinus pressure and pain or an expectorant for chest congestion.

“If you start to feel worse again after the cold starts to get better (body aches, sore throat and fever are gone) but the pain and pressure is in your face and gets worse, and you have thick secretions coming out of your nose, that’s when you should see a doctor.

CONVENTIONAL TREATMENT FOR NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK

After your doctor has determined the cause of chronic nasal congestion or nasal block, they can recommend a treatment plan. Treatment plans often include over-the-counter or prescription medication to relieve or alleviate symptoms.

Medications used to treat nasal congestion or nasal block includes:

• oral antihistamines to treat allergies, such as loratadine (Claritin) and cetirizine (Zyrtec)
• nasal sprays that contain antihistamines, such as azelastine (Astelin, Astepro)
• nasal steroids, such as mometasone (Asmanex Twisthaler) or fluticasone (Flovent Diskus, Flovent HFA)
• antibiotics
• over-the-counter or prescription-strength decongestants

If you have tumors or nasal polyps in your nasal passages or sinuses that are keeping mucus from draining out, your doctor may recommend surgery to remove them.

Home Treatments

When you’re stuffed up, focus on keeping your nasal passages and sinuses moist. Although people sometimes think that dry air might help clear up a runny nose, it actually has the opposite effect. Drying out the membranes will irritate them further.

To keep your nasal passages moist, you can:

• Use a humidifier or vaporizer.
• Take long showers or breathe in steam from a pot of warm (but not too hot) water
• Drink lots of fluids. This will thin out your mucus, which could help prevent blocked sinuses.
• Use a nasal saline spray. It’s salt water, and it will help keep your nasal passages from drying out
• Try a Neti pot, nasal irrigator, or bulb syringe. Use distilled, sterile water or H2O that’s been boiled and cooled to make up the irrigation solution. Rinse the irrigation device after each use and let it air dry.
• Place a warm, wet towel on your face. It may relieve discomfort and open your nasal passages.
• Prop yourself up. At night, lie on a couple of pillows. Keeping your head elevated may make breathing more comfortable.
• Avoid chlorinated pools. They can irritate your nasal passages.

BEST TREATMENT FOR NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK

If your nasal septum is deviated,many people try other treatments and get sufficient relief without the need for surgery.

Nasal congestion or nasal block due to a deviated septum is often made worse by allergies or infections. By treating the allergy or infection, your nasal obstruction may improve enough for you to breathe through your nose by acupuncture treatment without surgery. Oral contraceptives and certain prescription drugs used for treating high blood pressure and mood disorders can also increase nasal congestion.

CLINICAL DIAGNOSIS OF NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK AND ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENT

When visiting an Acupuncturist, you can expect a process that is designed to understand why you are here and to recommend treatments that make sense. During your first visit you will have a private consultation where we will discuss your current health concerns as well as your pertinent health history. This gives you the opportunity to express any concerns or questions you may have. There is a thorough traditional diagnosis, which consists of looking at the tongue, taking your pulse, and asking specific questions to get to the root of your current imbalance.

During this consultation, you may be asked about elements of your life that you might not have considered to be related to your main complaint. For example, sleeping habits and patterns, your emotional situation, your diet and eating habits, and other lifestyle matters.

EFFECTIVENESS OF ACUPUNCTURE TREATMENT

Acupuncture treatments can be so effective that you may notice your congestion lessening during your treatment, which is a wonderful experience. Acupuncture has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects on the body, helping to reduce the inflammation in the sinus cavities and decrease pain levels. Acupuncture also naturally helps with the movement of fluids inside the body, and can assist in the breakdown of congested mucous.

MECHANISM OF ACUPUNCTURE

In traditional Chinese medicine, your health depends on the flow of qi (energy) in your body. This energy travels along invisible pathways, known as meridians. These are found throughout your body.

Qi is believed to help keep your body in balance and promote its natural ability to heal itself. A blocked or disrupted flow of qi can negatively impact physical and emotional well-being.

During an acupuncture session, very thin needles are inserted into your skin to stimulate certain points, based on the symptoms you’re addressing. This stimulation, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine, helps to clear blockages along your meridians, restoring the flow of qi through your body.

People use acupuncture to help with a range of nasal congestion or nasal block, including headaches, pressure and pain.

ACUPUNCTURE FOR NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK

An acupuncture treatment will use both distal points on the limbs, hands, and feet as well as local points on the face and around the nose. For acute cases, receiving 2-3 treatments per week for at least 2 weeks is the most effective. For chronic cases, 2 treatments per week for at least 5 weeks is necessary.

Whether you have acute nasal congestion from a cold or a more serious nasal problem, seeing an Acupuncture Practitioner as soon as possible will significantly reduce your recovery time and help you get back to normal life. If you or a loved one are experiencing nasal congestion or nasal block, please do not hesitate to contact an acupuncturist to find out if/how Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine can benefit you.

RELIEF

Scientific research has found that acupuncture can provide some relief from nasal congestion or nasal block. The action is thought to be:

• Local; using points in the face to stimulate a reduction of inflammation in the nasal congestion and nasal block and
• Distal; utilising points in the arms/legs to regulate the immune system in the case of allergic rhinitis and bacterial infection of sinuses.

There is a large amount of evidence stating that acupuncture is effective and cost-effective in treating the primary causative factor of nasal congestion or nasal block. In addition to this, in comparison to pharmaceutical treatment, acupuncture of only three nasal points has proven to be more effective in the successful treatment of nasal congestion or nasal block.

BEST CURE FOR NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK

An acupuncture treatment will aim to correct the flow of energy in the body to target the underlying cause. This ancient approach can work to relieve nasal symptoms and also prevent them from returning. The first thing you'll notice about acupuncture as an immediate effect is the opening of the nose, reducing congestion and relieving pain or pressure in the sinuses. In many cases, people notice a significant reduction right away.

Some recent research has shown that acupuncture is effective in the treatment of nasal congestion or nasal block and may be even more beneficial than antihistamines. Acupuncture can be just as effective in the treatment of nasal congestion or nasal block as the standard prescribed medications.

Acupuncture is also effective for other forms of chronic nasal obstruction. Patients receiving traditional acupuncture experienced significant improvement on a visual analogue scale and in nasal airflow both after treatments and over time.

TREAT NASAL CONGESTION OR NASAL BLOCK WITHOUT SURGERY

Septoplasty - Surgical Treatment of Nasal congestion and Blocked Nose

This is quite a common procedure, where a bent nasal septum is corrected. It is a day treatment under a short general anaesthesia. Antibiotics are prescribed postoperatively to prevent infection or bleeding. Patients hate having packs removed from the nose after surgery. We do away with this by using laser techniques on the turbinates (which would otherwise be prone to bleeding). The nose tends to swell up a bit inside for about 1 week post-op.

All these side effects will be avoided while treating Nasal congestion or nasal block with the Acupuncture. Acupuncture is the best and safe treatment which has no side effects and helps heal in the natural way.

BEST ACUPUNCTURE DOCTOR NEAR ME

To choose the Best doctor for Acupuncture, it's important that the Acupuncturist should have a decade of experience and treated at least 1000 to 2000 patients.

You can also search for the Best Acupuncture Doctor near me or ask your primary care physician to refer an experienced Acupuncturist nearby. Once you find the Best Acupuncture Doctor in Chennai, you may go through their google reviews first and then fix an appointment with the doctor only when you are satisfied with the reviews.

The Best Acupuncture Doctor should address your concerns and help you feel more comfortable before your first session. Acupuncture usually takes numerous sessions or several weeks to get a complete cure in any ailment but within 3 or 4 sessions the patients will experience positive differences.

BEST ACUPUNCTURE CLINIC NEAR ME

Owing to the demand for the treatment, there are numerous clinics popping up and it is sometimes skeptical to choose the best or even the safe one. To address such concerns, you can look into the following points to choose the best acupuncture clinic for nasal congestion or nasal block. Acupuncture is also offered in hospital pain clinics and by healthcare organizations but it is ideal to visit the best Acupuncture Clinic for Nasal congestion or nasal block. If you are not sure, it would be a good idea to contact your local doctor to see if they would be prepared to refer to the best rated acupuncture clinics. For example in cases where a patient specifically requests acupuncture for nasal congestion or nasal block, or where it is felt that acupuncture would complement conventional treatment. In some cases acupuncture is offered in top rated acupuncture clinics near me because conventional treatment has failed or produces unacceptable side effects.

Most of the best acupuncture clinics for nasal congestion or nasal block will spell out very clearly

• what type of acupuncture they practice
• how much they charge
• how professional they are - at present anyone can set themselves up as an acupuncturist but reputable practitioners will belong to an organization
• whether the premises are hygienic and smart
• what other therapies they offer

So while you are filtering the best clinics for acupuncture that treats nasal congestion or nasal block, you can look out for these factors.

We have been rewarded a 5-star rating from Google & Practo. You can also check the reviews there.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Nasal congestion or Nasal block rarely causes major health problems and is most often caused by the common cold or a sinus infection. Symptoms usually improve right away with proper treatment. If you experience chronic congestion, speak to your doctor to investigate the underlying problem.

SCIENTIFIC REFERENCES:

• I. Annesi-Maesano, “Epidemiological evidence of the occurrence of rhinitis and sinusitis in asthmatics,” Allergy, vol. 54, no. 57, pp. 7–13, 1999.
• E. O. Meltzer, J. Szwarcberg, and M. W. Pill, “Allergic rhinitis, asthma, and rhinosinusitis: diseases of the integrated airway,” Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 310–317, 2004.
• M. W. Ryan, “Asthma and rhinitis: comorbidities,” Otolaryngologic Clinics of North America, vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 283–295, 2008.

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FAQ:

What are the services provided for nasal congestion/nasal block by Dr. Bharath’s Acu Heal?

Nasal congestion, or "stuffy nose," is a term that refers to the obstruction to the flow of air in and out of the nose. Nasal congestion most commonly is the result of inflammation and swelling of the lining tissues of the nasal passages and sinuses. Nasal congestion or nasal block can interfere with hearing and speech. Significant congestion may interfere with sleep, cause snoring, and can be associated with sleep apnea or upper airway resistance syndrome.

The treatment will be given based on the disease’s chronicity and acuteness. In the first few sessions, positive changes in symptoms may be experienced and after several more sessions there are 90 to 100% chance that the patient be cured completely of this ailment . This treatment will help in inducing sound sleep which will help and play a vital role in reversing other ailments if any. Simultaneously the patient will be advised on a diet and exercise regime.

What are the benefits of acupuncture for nasal congestion/nasal block ?

This is a drugless therapy and there are no side effects. During or after completing the course of treatment any form of medication can be stopped.

How many sessions do you need for nasal congestion/nasal block?

It takes around 20 to 30 sessions in a period of 2 to 4 months.