Deviated Septum : Causes, Picture, Symptoms And Treatment

Deviated septum is a disease related to nose whereas issues like breathing problem, anesthesia, sinus infection etc. are observed. In this article, we will thoroughly discuss the Deviated septum causes, symptoms & treatment procedures.

A nasal septum is a divider point in nose holes made of cartilage and bone. In case of Deviated Septum, this gets crooked or misaligned that creates difficulty in breathing. It is proved now that most of the people born with some misalignment in the nasal passage. Under the condition this misalignment is severe then it causes difficulty in breathing.

It is been observed by the specialist team of doctors, out of 80% of total population, people have DS and they are not even aware of this condition. This generally happens because the misalignment is not very severe or tilt, some injury happens to the nose or any trauma is done to the face.

Under the DS condition cartilage becomes uneven or tilt causing one side of nose hole more narrow which creates problems while breathing, often sounds generates during inhaling and exhaling process.

Immediate diagnosis and treatment should be started otherwise the condition can be severe and even surgery is required to relieved the breathing problem.

Causes of Deviated Septum Disease:

The Deviated septum is not only associated with the breathing problem it develops with other health issues also related to ear, neck, sinus etc. Nose is connected with other parts of the face, so any problem in it causes difficulty to other parts also.

As DS blocks one side of nose passage it becomes very difficult to breathe from only one side. This difficulty becomes severe in cold time when nasal passage gets blocked due to allergy. Below we have enlisted some common causes of Deviated septum.

• Most of the cases of Deviated Septum occurs genetically means it is inherited from the parents. If any of the parents (mother or father) has this disease most likely the chances exist to pass on the kids.
• In many cases, it is observed that the DS is developed in utero or in the womb. Other than that during the birth time also Deviated Septum can be developed.
• As per the surveys on Deviated Septum it is now been proved that more than the 20% kids are affected by it since birth. This most probably occurs due to difficulties in the delivery time or when the newly born baby carries good weight which causes difficulty in the delivery process.
• The severity and difficulty out of Deviated Septum occur as the affected person gets older.
• Those who are having Deviated Septum since birth, its shape looks similar to C or S alphabet.
• All the Deviated Septum problem are not genetic or not by birth. Sometimes a serious injury causes to nasal shape into an irregular shape, extreme angle etc.
• If the Deviated Septum occurs due to injury then, in that case, it can cause fracture or dis localization of cartilage.

Symptoms of Deviated Septum Disease:

Though Deviated septum can develop at the time of birth only due to difficulties in the delivery process especially if the baby’s weight is heavy but initially it doesn’t make problem in breathing. But along with adolescence, the cartilage gets thicker causes blockage in the nose and other difficulties.

Most of us are unaware of the fact that our cartilage in the nose is generally little bit misaligned but as it doesn’t create any kind of difficulty to us so we don’t bother. But in few people, the cartilage remains crooked and very misaligned which hampers normal breathing process.

The symptoms of Deviated septum can be outlined under the following points. If you are also suffering from these issues then it clears that you are a victim of Deviated septum and you require immediate medical attention without much delay.

• Nasal congestion is observed. Due to lack of free airflow in the nose, the head gets stuffy and this causes a headache. The regular pressure in head cause migraine issue in future which is very difficult to get rid off completely.
• Bleeding from nose observed very often which is not at all good for overall health. This mainly occurs when the air enters the nose with difficulty due to the curved septum hence the membranes get dry. Due to this dryness even a small outer pressure cause bleeding in the nose.
• Sinus problems are observed which do not get relieved even after counter medication.
• Nasal congestion or blockages are seen on only one side of the nose.
• Sinus infection observed very frequently. This frequently occurs due to the clogged nasal passage which in future accompanied by nasal drip or other new cold symptoms.
• Dryness problem enhances in in the nose due to the entrance of over air inside which make the mucous membranes dry causing a problem in breathing.
• Pain generates in the nearby area of the nose in the face.
• Postnasal drip occurs.
• Breathing process becomes more noisy means the person affected by Deviated Septum often make noisy breathing at the time of sleep.
• A headache becomes a common problem for the person who develops Deviated Septum accompanied by migraines.
• In some severe cases of Deviated Septum sleep apnea occurs. This is a severe condition which rarely occurs. In this condition during sleeping time breathes stop.
• The affected person becomes bound to sleep only by one side in order to avoid pain and breathing issues.
• Sleeping disorder occurs due to the Deviated septum as because snoring or sounding breathe harness the peace of mind causing irregular slip which affects to health other ways.
• If someone is affected by Deviated Septum then he or she cannot breaths normally. A whistling sound generates during the breathing process.

If these symptoms are been observed then treatment procedure should be started after consulting with the specialist doctor.

Treatment of Deviated Septum Disease:

Once after the diagnosis process, it becomes clear that the patient is affected from Deviated Septum then immediate treatment procedure needs to be started without any delay in order to avoid further complications associated with it.

Nose is one of the most important body parts of a human being as it performs the most necessary function that is breathing without which no one can alive even for a second.

In the many diagnosis process its been cleared that the symptoms are observing due to some other disease or health problem. It helps in starting correct treatment procedure for relieving the patient from unnecessary health trouble.

Some other medical problems can also be a reason for problems in nasal like infection, allergy, nasal polyps etc. which affects ear and throat also along with the nose.

If the symptoms of Deviated Septum are get matched then the doctor starts investing the root cause of this issue. This investigation process includes to find out whether any past surgery happens or not, was there any severe injury affecting the nasal portion or is there any other chronic symptom is visible or not.

This deep investigation procedure helps to reach the depth of the problem and hence the doctor can start accurate treatment procedure which can be relieved the patient from its current suffering condition.

Devices like bright torch and speculum are been used by the doctor for the physical examination of the nasal area for finding out the real pain cause.

In case of mild symptoms of DS, medication is started as prescribed by the doctor. In most of the cases, patients get relieved after full treatment.

Some basic Treatment procedures include:

• Nasal sprays for reducing the inflammation.
• Nasal dilators are applied for relieving the condition.
• Antihistamines are used for removing breathing issue.
• Saline irrigations are done.
• In case of severe symptoms, it is advised to the patient to stay away from allergy creating elements or factors creating infection as it can make the condition much more severe and problematic.
• If the patient condition is getting much more severe then a surgical procedure called Septoplasty is applied for immediate relief. It is done through the open nostrils by using local or general anesthetic. This surgery procedure takes generally one to two hour to be accomplished.
• The Septoplasty surgery no way affects to the shape of the nose of the patient. It totally removes the nasal problem and enables the patient to live a normal life.
• Under the condition misalignment is quite severe then septoplasty doesn’t bring complete relaxation. In this case, nasal surgery is needed to be done along with septoplasty. In this surgery, the broken part of the septum is brought out and reshaped by the specialists and after reshaping it is again reinserted.
• These surgical procedures are not free of the fear of side effects. Some common side effects that can occur due to nasal surgery or septoplasty are a nasal infection, anesthesia and bleeding problems. If these occur then treatment procedures are proceeded to relieve from these conditions separately.
• The nasal surgery is only applied to the patient at age 18 or more than that. As the child grew up the cartilage in the septum keep on growing and in future creates much more problem in the breathing process.
• In the severe situations, the repetition of surgical procedure is needed to be done as if the misalignment is excessive. The age of the patient also matters in this context.
• The success of the nasal surgery or septoplasty totally depends on the causes of breathing problem or nasal issues. If the Deviated Septum is the only reason for the problem in the nose then it gets relieved after these surgical process.

Complications Associated With Deviated Septum & Prevention:

If the Deviated septum condition gets worst then it calls for surgery process. The surgery is associated with some other health hazard as its side effects like inflammation, sensation loss, infection etc.

• Septoplasty surgery which is done to treat nasal blockage which occurs due to a thickness of septum as the patient ages causing a severe problem during the breath. This surgery is done via nostrils which are accompanied by some complications like bleeding, external scars, visible bruising.
• Sometimes the Septoplasty surgery needs to be combined with another surgery process also for complete relief which is known as Rhinoplasty. This surgery process can cause to change the external look of the nose.
• All the surgery process for treating the Deviated Septum is accompanied by some kind of complications. Sometimes these complications are visualized in the initial stage whereas some get visualized at the end of the treatment procedure.
• In rare cases, it is found that even after the surgery there is no satisfactory improvement in the breathing process.
• Sometimes after surgery, it is observed that bleeding occurs frequently from the nose. Apart from bleeding problem loss of sensation is another issue that comes into the picture after surgery.
• A sensation at the nose tip get lost and sometimes the upper side of front teeth also loses its sensation. This sensation can exist even for many months.
• Loss of smell is another complication which is associated with Deviated Septum surgery as its post effect. This is a very rare scenario.
• Bleeding, crusting and whistle sounds can generate due to septal perforation. Sometimes it can change the look of the external nose.

Prevention Measures:

In order to avoid these complications, some prevention measures must be followed strictly so that any long-term trouble would not occur.

• Those who like to play outdoor games like football and cricket must wear a helmet for protecting their nose. Most of the accidents to nose occur while playing outdoor games that can cause a problem of Deviated Septum.
• While driving a car or any other vehicle seat belt must be wear by the driver as it will protect you from any severe loss or damage during an accident.
• All the guidelines provided after the surgery procedures by the doctor should be adhered to otherwise the patient might have to face lifetime problem in the form of sensation loss or bleeding etc.
• Until the patient gets fully recovered he or she must avoid infection creating elements otherwise complete relief will not be achieved.
• Immediate detection should be done in case of infection occurs due to nasal packing otherwise it can get inflamed.

In order to avoid a suffering condition to health, every one of us should be aware of the Deviated septum causes, symptoms & treatment procedures and it should not be left untreated in case of symptoms matched.