Did you know the official medical name for a nosebleed is “epistaxis“?
As every parent knows, children easily get nosebleeds more often than adults, typically either from irritating the nasal membrane (i.e. picking their noses) or from a bump or minor trauma (like being hit with a play ball in the face).
However when adults get nosebleeds, it could be an indicator of a more severe medical problem, so be sure to tell your doctor if you have gotten several bloody noses, especially without physical trauma.
The reason why the nose is so vulnerable to bleeding is … well your nose sticks out in front of your face and of course it’s going to be susceptible to getting bumped. But also your nose has an abundant blood supply to help warm and moisten air when we breath in, so it can bleed a lot, easily.
It’s worth taking note that there are may different causes for nosebleeds in adults – here are some common causes to take note of.
- Trauma
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Blood thinning medication (e.g: Warfarin)
- Foreign bodies (fingers!)
- Inflammation
How to treat a nosebleed with basic first aid
Step 1:
Ask the person to tilt their head forwards (not backwards) and pinch the soft part of their nose for about ten minutes. Encourage them not to pick at their nose or sniff. Ask them to breath through their mouth.
(A common misconception is that you should tilt head backwards. This isn’t recommended as blood will travel back down into your mouth and into your stomach. This can make you feel sick.)
It can be very difficult to get a child to sit still and hold their nose for 10 minutes, so try your best. In some cases you might have to hold their nose for them.
Step 2:
After 10 minutes release the pressure and see if the bleeding has stopped. If it hasn’t, reapply the pressure. You can also try placing something cool on the nose (ice pack etc.) to constrict the blood vessels.
Step 3:
Once the bleeding has stopped, clean up any blood from around the face/mouth. Tell the person not to sneeze/pick at their nose/sniff for several hours as this could cause the bleeding to start again.
If the bleeding does not stop (after around 20 – 30 minutes), you should seek medical advice. In addition, if the cause of the nosebleed is unclear or they are recurring you should also seek advice.
In the case the nose bleed is a result of a head injury, this can be the sign of a more serious injury, therefore urgent medical assistance should be sought.
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