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Diagnosis

If you have nasal polyps that are near the front of your nose, you may be able to see them in a mirror by shining a light up your nostrils. Nasal polyps look like pearly gray, slightly translucent lumps. However, polyps are often at the back of the nose, where a doctor can see them only with an instrument called a nasal speculum, which holds the nostrils open. Nasal polyps that haven’t caused symptoms are often discovered by a doctor during an examination of a person’s nose for other reasons.

Treatment

Nasal polyps sometimes go away in a few years with no treatment. Your doctor may prescribe a corticosteroid nasal spray to help reduce inflammation and shrink the polyps. If your nasal polyps are causing severe symptoms, your doctor may refer you to a specialist who may recommend that you have the polyps removed surgically. To shrink the polyps before surgery, you may need to take oral corticosteroid medication. Polyps have a tendency to recur even after surgery.

Deviated Septum

The nasal septum is the wall that divides the nasal cavity in half. A deviated septum is an off-center or crooked septum that usually has resulted from an injury. Even if the nose looks straight from the outside, the septum may be crooked. A deviated septum can narrow the nasal cavity on one side, making breathing difficult. Although no one has a septum that is perfectly straight, it is rare to have a deviation that significantly diminishes air flow through the nose.

Adhesive nasal strips

Adhesive nasal strips consist of two bands of plastic in an adhesive pad. When the strips are placed correctly across the bridge of the nose, they safely lift the sides of the nose and widen the space in the nasal passage, making it easier to breathe through the nose. Many people wear the strips when they sleep to help reduce snoring.

Diagnosis

To determine how crooked your septum is, your doctor will examine the inside of your nose using an instrument called a nasal speculum, which holds the nostrils open. He or she will also evaluate how much your breathing is affected by the deviated septum.

Treatment

Your doctor may recommend that you use adhesive nasal strips to widen your nasal passage and make it easier for you to breathe. These strips are especially helpful to wear when you’re sleeping and when you’re exercising. Your doctor also may prescribe a corticosteroid nasal spray or oral corticosteroid tablets to reduce the inflammation in the nasal passage and improve your breathing. If the spray, tablets, or breathing strips do not improve your breathing, your doctor may recommend surgery.

The Throat

The throat, also called the pharynx, is part of a multipurpose passageway leading from the back of the nose and mouth down to the trachea (windpipe) and esophagus. When you breathe, air passes through your throat into the trachea on its way into and out of the lungs. When you swallow, chewed food lubricated with saliva moves down your throat into the esophagus on its way to the stomach.

The throat splits into two parts at the opening to the larynx (voice box), which is at the top of the trachea. The larynx consists of cartilage, muscle, and connective tissue. At the upper end of the larynx are two paired folds of fibrous tissue. The upper pair are the false vocal cords, which do not produce sound but close along with the epiglottis (the flap of cartilage that lies behind the tongue and in front of the larynx) during swallowing to prevent food from entering the larynx. The lower pair are the vocal cords. Air passing between the vocal cords makes them vibrate to produce the broad range of sounds that your mouth shapes into speech.

The throat

The pharynx (throat) is a passageway that leads to the larynx (voice box) and trachea (windpipe). Air passes through the throat and trachea to the lungs. Food passes through the throat to the esophagus and stomach.

Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is a serious and potentially life-threatening breathing disorder that can cause a person to stop breathing for short