Nasal Obstruction and Congestion
Nasal Obstruction and Congestion Services
At Spokane ENT, we provide comprehensive evaluation and management of nasal obstruction and congestion, common symptoms that can significantly impact breathing, sleep, and quality of life. Nasal obstruction may affect one or both sides of the nose and can be caused by structural issues such as a deviated septum or enlarged turbinates, or by inflammation from allergies, chronic sinusitis, or other conditions. Our team performs thorough evaluation to identify the cause of your congestion and guide appropriate treatment, whether medical management or referral for nasal airway surgery when indicated.
We utilize advanced diagnostic techniques to evaluate nasal obstruction, including detailed history taking to understand your symptoms, their pattern, and what has helped in the past. Our evaluation includes comprehensive nasal examination using nasal endoscopy to visualize the nasal cavity, septum, turbinates, and sinus openings. We look for structural causes such as a deviated septum (the wall dividing the two nasal passages), enlarged inferior turbinates, nasal polyps, or other abnormalities. When indicated, we may order CT imaging of the sinuses to assess anatomy and rule out contributing sinus disease. We also evaluate for allergic and inflammatory causes. This assessment helps determine whether medical treatment alone is likely to help or whether surgical correction may be beneficial.
Our treatment approach begins with appropriate medical management, which may include nasal corticosteroid sprays, nasal saline rinses, allergy treatment, and short-term decongestants when appropriate. Many patients with mild to moderate obstruction improve with medical management. When obstruction persists despite medical treatment and examination or imaging shows structural causes such as a deviated septum or enlarged turbinates, we coordinate with our rhinologists who perform surgical nasal airway procedures, including septoplasty and turbinate reduction. Our goal is to improve your nasal breathing and quality of life. For more information about these procedures, see our Surgical Nasal Airway Procedures page.
Nasal Obstruction and Congestion Resources
Frequently Asked Questions
Common causes include a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates, allergies, chronic sinusitis, nasal polyps, and structural abnormalities. We evaluate to identify the specific cause and guide treatment.
See an ENT if you have chronic nasal obstruction (one or both sides), congestion that doesn't improve with over-the-counter medications, difficulty breathing through the nose, or congestion that affects sleep or quality of life.
Evaluation includes a detailed history, nasal examination with endoscopy to view the septum, turbinates, and nasal cavity, and sometimes CT imaging. This helps identify whether the obstruction is structural (septum, turbinates) or due to inflammation.
Surgery such as septoplasty or turbinate reduction may be considered when medical treatment fails to relieve obstruction, and examination or imaging shows structural causes like a deviated septum or enlarged turbinates. Our rhinologists perform these procedures when indicated.
Medical treatment may include nasal corticosteroid sprays, nasal saline rinses, allergy treatment, and decongestants. These often help when congestion is due to inflammation; structural causes may require surgery when symptoms persist.