Nasal polyp | What is a polyp and how can you treat it easy and simple?
Nasal polyps are one of the most common nasal diseases. If you feel bumps on the inside of your nose, you may have a nasal polyp. Nasal polyps appear to be the size of a grape seed or a teardrop. They grow, enlarge, and surround the nasal passages and sinuses. There are some types of nasal polyps that can block the nose and make it difficult to breathe. Nasal polyps are soft, painless and non-cancerous. Fortunately, there are many home remedies for nasal polyps and many treatments to prevent the polyp from coming back.
Causes of nasal polyps
Scientists do not really know what a nasal polyp is. However, there is evidence that people with nasal polyps have different immune responses than those without nasal polyps. This nasal disease is associated with allergic rhinitis, asthma, aspirin allergies, sinus infections, acute and chronic infections, and cystic fibrosis. They can occur at any age, but are more common in young, healthy adults. Men over the age of 40 are also more likely to develop nasal polyps.
Signs and symptoms of nasal polyps
- Nasal congestion
- Sneeze / runny nose
- Facial pain
- Problem with smell
- Loss of sense of taste
- Itching around the eyes
- Snoring
- Infections Pain in your upper teeth
- Phonetic changes
- Feeling pressure on the forehead and face
Complications of polyps
- Obstructive sleep apnea: This condition causes serious complications that usually start with your breathing.
- Sinus infections: Nasal polyps may increase the risk of sinus infections. They last for more than 12 weeks with inflammation of the lining of the nose and sinuses. (Chronic rhinosinusitis, also known as chronic sinusitis)
How can you treat this nasal disease?
Conventional treatment usually begins with nasal corticosteroid spray. There may also be a prescription for prisinone taken orally for a week. There are also nasal steroids, which you might need to use to treat nasal polyps.
Other medications, such as antihistamines and anticoagulants, are good for when you do not really have a nasal polyp. However, if you have an infection, you may be prescribed antihistamines to control allergies or antibiotics to start before you start steroid injections. If nasal sprays do not help much, your specialist may recommend surgery.
Nasal polyp surgery
If medication does not help treat this nasal disease, you have to have a surgery to remove the polyps or correct sinus problems. Nasal polyp surgery is performed on an outpatient basis, without incisions or stitches. If the size of the polyps is small, polypectomy will be performed; and if the size of the polyps is large, endoscopic surgery will be performed. After surgery, your specialist will recommend corticosteroid sprays to prevent the return of nasal polyps.
In the past, surgical procedures involved making incisions in the face. But today they perform the procedure endoscopically, without any incisions; and the surgeon performs all the procedures through the images shown on the screen. During a nasal polyp surgery, the surgeon will remove inflamed tissue, polyps, or other clogging factors. The duration of this surgery depends on the surgery, the severity of the cramp, and the patient’s physical condition.
People who suffer from chronic sinusitis, nasal polyps or nasal congestion are good candidates for nasal polyp surgery. The purpose of this surgery is to open the sinuses that are clogged due to inflammation, to improve the patient’s breathing.
How long would be the recovery time?
After surgery, the recovery period is at least 3 days and finally a week, after which you can resume your daily activities. If you do not take the necessary care after surgery, you will not get the desired result. So pay close attention to your doctor’s recommendations.
What should you do before and after the surgery?
There are always some things to do in order to ease your surgery and your recovery time. In the rest of this article we will tell you what to do and what not to do before and after a nasal polyp surgery.
Before the surgery:
Before surgery, tests such as ECG tests, X-rays or blood tests should be performed. You should also stop some medications. If the surgery is performed under anesthesia, the person should not eat or drink anything before the surgery. You should also discard cigarettes and tobacco because the nicotine in cigarettes delays recovery.
After the surgery:
- Avoid being in dusty areas after surgery.
- Avoid smoking for 2 weeks as it slows down the healing process.
- Do not drink hot beverages for 2 weeks, as they will cause nosebleeds.
- It is perfectly normal to have some pain after surgery, which can be relieved by taking painkillers.
- Avoid strenuous activity as it increases the risk of bleeding.
- Stop driving for a week.
- Do not keep your head down for a long time.
- Hold your head and neck high at rest with two pillows.
- Use rinsing serums to flush blood clots inside your nose.
What is a deviated septum?
One of the problems that can cause a person to need corrective surgery is the deviation of the septum. The nasal septum is the part of the nose that separates the two inner parts of the nose. And usually the cartilaginous part of it is deviated. Deviation of the nasal septum can occur for a variety of reasons. Accident, trauma and congenital causes can be the cause of nasal deviation. Deviation of the nasal septum can be very severe. And cover the bony part of the nose or be light. And be seen only in the cartilaginous part and at the tip of the nose. Sometimes the deviation of the nasal septum is not visible at all. But it does cause problems. Difficulty breathing and snoring at night are some of the problems that cause deviation of the nasal septum.
Are nasal polyps similar to a deviated septum?
The answer is NO! deviated septum is a problem of the nasal septum, which separate the inner parts of the nose. Polyps are actually some bumps you feel inside your nose, The only similarity these two have are that they both can make it difficult for you to breathe; and in order to correct them you may need a surgery. But you can only treat a deviated septum with surgery; and as you know, the nasal polyp’s only treatment is not surgery! So don’t make a mistake!
