What is a Saline Sinus Rinse?

Overview of Nasal Irrigation

Nasal irrigation

Nasal irrigation has been widely used in the treatment of various diseases of the nasal cavity and sinuses, including acute and chronic rhinitis. Sinusitis, allergic and non-allergic rhinitis, non-specific nasal symptoms (such as nasal discharge), nasal septum perforation, nasal surgery, nasal radiotherapy and so on. It can also be applied to common colds. ^[1]

The exact role and mechanism of nasal irrigation are considered by most people to be related to the following mechanisms:

Improve mucous ciliary function ^[3]

Nasal irrigation is a safe method of treatment with few side effects. Only a few literatures have reported the following side effects, such as local burning in the nasal cavity, itching, tearing, nosebleeds, headaches, earaches, and fluid entering the sinuses after irrigation Discomfort and other symptoms caused by outflow; however, most people think that these side effects are very slight and do not affect patients' satisfaction with nasal irrigation. Keeri et al. questioned 134 patients through a questionnaire. As a result, 95% of patients considered nasal irrigation as a simple and easy treatment method, and 84.7% of patients thought it was very comfortable. Therefore, he believes that nasal irrigation is a recognized treatment method for patients. ^[6]

For the nasal cavity washing device and method, one is nasal lavage with a nasal pot, the other is nasal spray of a nasal washer, and the third method is nasal spray of a nasal washing machine. Nasal spray can spread to the maxillary sinus and nasal sinus complex more effectively, and it has a better cleaning effect on the nasal cavity and sinus cavity. The clinical use of gas-water gram-sensitive nasal washer is the most common. It can effectively infiltrate the air-water cleaning particles into the nasal cavity and sinus cavity, and thoroughly clean all kinds of allergens, mold cells and inflammatory media on the nasal mucosa and nasal cilia. ^[8]

Under normal circumstances, if there is no special medical order, it can be washed with 0.9% isotonic saline. For patients with sinusitis, it can be washed with hypertonic, such as 2-3% saline. In addition, for postoperative patients, drugs such as gentamicin, dexamethasone, or furfur can be added to reduce swelling and anti-inflammatory effects.