How to stop a runny nose? Here’s TWO easy tips for quick relief, says This Morning’s Dr Zoe
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Here’s what readers asked me this week…
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Q: I HAVE had a runny nose for about nine weeks and it’s driving me mad. Sometimes it feels like I’ve got the flu, but I can’t stop my nose running, no matter what. I’m a 79-year-old male and healthy other than that.
A: The medical term for a runny nose is rhinorrhoea.
A runny nose can be annoying to say the least, but usually they clear up in a few days or a week or two.
It is often caused by inflammation in the nasal passages — we call this rhinitis, and it’s often accompanied by sneezing, itching and/or congestion.
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Infections such as the common cold are the main cause, but tend to be short lived.
Allergic rhinitis is another leading cause and common allergens include pollen, dust mite, mould and animal dander.
Rhinitis can also be triggered by changes in temperature, humidity, and exposure to irritating chemicals, smells, or certain medications — especially some types of antidepressants, beta blockers or nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs.
So if you’ve started taking new medication in the last nine weeks, speak to your pharmacy to see if there could be a link.
Some people do get symptoms caused by age-related changes.
A reduction of blood flow to the mucosal lining of the nasal cavity can cause the tissues of the nose to shrink and dry out, causing rhinitis.
If you haven’t sought any medical attention so far, please do, as this does need to be looked at by a doctor to check for nasal polyps and to rule out concern of a more serious cause, such as nasal cancer.
In the meantime I’d advise using daily nasal saline sprays or washes, and consider trying a nasal steroid — both of which you can buy from your pharmacist.
Q: FOR weeks I have had a white spot on the side of my tongue that will not go away. I first had a sore there, it cleared up, then the white spot appeared. Is it something I should be worried about?
A: If it’s been there for more than three weeks, my advice would be to visit either your dentist or your GP.
White spots on the tongue aren’t unusual but they usually disappear in a week to ten days.
There are a few things it could be; oral thrush is a common fungal infection that may happen if we’re run down or if we’ve taken a recent course of antibiotics.
It is also more common in people with diabetes, those who wear dentures, people with anaemia and smokers.
It’s rarely serious but if it doesn’t clear up on its own — which yours hasn’t — it may require treatment.
It could also be an aphthous ulcer which can be triggered by a virus, bacteria or a weakened immune system.
Allergies, stress and vitamin deficiencies can make you more susceptible to them too, as can any oral trauma.
Leukoplakia is where white or grey spots appear on the tongue or gums.
It’s associated with smoking and while it usually clears up on its own, it does carry a small risk of developing into mouth cancer, so it’s worth getting it checked out.
Q: I HAVE an enlarged anus and have tried to contact the doctor about it. But I had to speak to a receptionist to explain my problem, and twice they haven’t called me back. I have still not spoken to a doctor and it’s been a month now.
I’m so sorry your experience has been a negative one so far.
Please do persevere to try to get that appointment.
Doctors’ receptionists often ask what the condition you’re calling about is so they can triage your call and make sure you speak to the right person, however, you don’t have to explain it if you’d rather not.
You can simply explain it’s a personal issue that you’d rather not disclose.
Anal swelling can be caused by haemorrhoids, which develop from increased pressure in the lower rectum.
This often occurs when people strain to go to the toilet or sit on the toilet for a long time.
Anusitis is another condition which causes anal swelling, it’s not serious and can be treated with a cream.
It’s worth thinking about your diet too: has anything changed?
Anusitis often flares with dietary changes.
It could also be down to an anal fissure, abscess or anal fistula, so it is important to see a doctor for a diagnosis to be made.
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I promise your doctor won’t be disturbed by your symptoms, we deal with issues like these on a daily basis, so please persevere and try and get an appointment.
If a phone call isn’t working, see if your surgery has an online consultation option where you can explain everything online.
‘Odd bumps on the face’
Q: MY uncle has been struggling to get an appointment with his doctor and I was wondering could you give him any advice about a series of bumps on his face?
A: There are a number of different types of skin lesions I can see on the photos you’ve sent.
Some small white lumps mostly in the area between the eyes, some larger brown, warty looking lumps on the cheeks look like seborrhoeic keratosis, and there are also some signs of rosacea present.
The full history is really required as well as an in person examination of the skin, but on first glance, none of these are alarming.
But I‘d really like to know more about the brown patch on your uncle’s lower lip, especially how long that has been there and if it is changing.
This just goes to show how useful an e-consultation can be, as you can submit photographs along with some details of your query.
If I received this as an e-consult, I’d likely give your uncle a quick call to ask a couple of questions about the lip and then bring him in for a face to face appointment, the urgency of which being based on his answers to those questions.
So please do advise him to do an e-consult if his practice offers this, and submit this photo along with some details about the lip lesion