Nasal congestion

Definition

Nasal congestion refers to a stuffy nose. Many people think that a nose gets congested (stuffy) from too much thick mucus. This is incorrect. The nose becomes congested when the tissues lining the nose become swollen due to inflamed blood vessels.

Alternative Names

Considerations

A stuffy nose is usually caused by a virus and typically goes away by itself within a week.

Newborn infants must breathe through the nose. Nasal congestion in an infant in the first few months of life can interfere with nursing and cause life-threatening breathing problems. Nasal congestion in older children and adolescents is usually just an annoyance, but can cause other difficulties.

Nasal congestion can interfere with the ears, hearing, and speech development. Significant congestion may interfere with sleep, cause snoring, and can be associated with episodes of not breathing during sleep (sleep apnea).

In children, nasal congestion from enlarged adenoids has caused chronic sleep apnea with insufficient oxygen levels and right-sided heart failure. The problem usually goes away after surgery to remove the adenoids and tonsils.

Causes

Congestion can be caused by many of the same things that cause a runny nose, including:

• Common cold
• Hay fever or other allergies
• Flu
• Overuse of some nasal sprays or drops
• Sinus infection
• Vasomotor rhinitis