Are you dealing with frequent nosebleeds? Find out what might be going on.

While most people will experience a nosebleed at least once in their life, there are others who deal with this problem more regularly. While this is often the result of cold, dry air, it’s important to recognize when a nosebleed might actually be letting you know that there is something else going on. From the office of our New Canaan and Norwalk, CT, area otolaryngologist, Dr. Andrew Parker, find out why nosebleeds occur.

As we mentioned before, a lot of times people will experience nosebleeds in the winter when the weather is colder and drier, leading to cracked dry nasal passages. If you find that your nosebleeds occur during colder months then you might just want to blame the cold New England winters.

If you are someone who can’t leave something alone and may pick or mess around with their nose when it’s already dry or sensitive then you may end up injuring the nasal tissue, resulting in a nosebleed. This is a fairly common reason for nosebleeds in children.

In some cases, a nosebleed may result from the common cold. When there is an infection, your body starts producing histamine, which can cause the blood vessels to dilate. Sometimes the blood vessels dilate within the nose, causing congestion and swelling. As a result, you may find yourself blowing your nose more, which can cause little tears in the lining of the nasal tissue.

If you are someone who battles seasonal allergies then you may also notice that you are more susceptible to nosebleeds. Again, blame your body for producing histamine to help fight your allergy symptoms but also causing that bloody nose.

If you take certain medications such as blood thinners, it can make it more challenging for the body to form a clot to stop the bleeding. When taking this medication even the simplest injury to a blood vessel within the nose could lead to a severe nosebleed.

Sometimes structural problems are to blame. A deviated septum is when the cartilage and bone that separate your left from your right nostril leans more to one side than the other. This can often lead to difficulty breathing through the nose; however, symptoms of a deviated septum are usually so minor that people don’t even realize that they have this deformity until they visit our New Canaan and Norwalk, CT ENT doctor for an evaluation. Since the septum leans more to one side it is prone to drying out, which can cause more frequent nosebleeds.

If you are dealing with severe or persistent nosebleeds and want to find out what’s going on, turn to Parker Ear, Nose & Throat in New Canaan and Norwalk, CT, to get the answers you deserve.