Scabs In Nose
Causes And Treatment For Scabs Inside Your Nose
One of the main causes of scabs inside your nose is dry air. Most people experience dryness in colder weather, especially when the seasons change due to a significant lack of moisture in their nasal passage. This dryness will often cause the skin that is inside the nose to crack and bleed. The blood is not necessarily enough to constitute as a bloody nose but it is enough to coat the inside of your nostril which dries up and turns into a scab.
Scabs inside your nose are not only just a little uncomfortable, for many people they can become extremely painful and last for a long time. Along with a dry nasal passage, it is not uncommon to also experience a dry throat and mouth at the same time.
- Medications – There are a large number of medications that reduce moisture in your nose. Oral allergy medications and nasal sprays are the main culprits. Allergy antihistamines typically list a dry throat and nose as a side effect. Also, while nasal sprays generally help with congestion, over use can cause a rebound effect to occur and lead to scabs inside your nose.
- Upper Respiratory Infection – You may automatically associate the flu, colds or other infections with having a runny nose but there are some viruses that dry your nasal passages. If you have an infection such as rhinitis the congestion prevents moisture from having the opportunity to coat walls inside your nose.
- Indoor Environment – It is reported that most people keep their homes as dry as the Sahara desert. Of course, no one wants a humid home but without at least a bit of humidity, your nose will dry, often bleed and cause scabs to form. Experts recommend keeping the humidity in your home above 20 percent.
- High Blood Pressure – While you may experience dryness that leads to cracking which results to blood and the formation of scabs inside your nose, if you simply have a bloody nose for no reason that causes scabs, this could be a sign of high blood pressure. Nearly 20 percent of individuals that visit the emergency room for high blood pressure related issues, also experienced a bloody nose.
- Menopause – It is not uncommon to experience scabs inside your nose because of menopause. When you enter this time, collagen is decreased, causing the skin to be less elastic. These hormonal changes also dry out mucous membranes in the mouth, eyes and vaginal tissues.
- Sjögren's Syndrome – This is an autoimmune disorder that typically targets women who are over 40 years old. The condition dries out mucous membranes in various parts of the body including nasal, eyes and oral tissues.
- Cocaine – This fast-acting drug that only offers its effects for a short time, has a long-term effect on your nose. Continued snorting of cocaine is very damaging and will cause nasal infections, ulcers and in more acute cases, it will perforate the wall that divides the nose. The ulcers are breaks in your nose's mucous membranes that disintegrate surface tissue. They are often accompanied by pus that turns to scabs in your nose that continuously worsen with prolonged drug use.
Determining the cause of the scabs is very important for appropriate treatment. It is always helpful to keep your body hydrated by drinking water throughout the day. Some other helpful treatment methods include:
- Use a humidifier in your home or at least in your bedroom while you sleep at night.
- Check your medications if you are taking something that causes dry nose, talk to your doctor about an alternative.
- You can squirt a bit of saline water in your nasal cavity whenever you need to add moisture, especially when it is time to go to sleep.
- Use steam relief. Either stand over some steam water or place a warm, moist washcloth over your nose.