When there are polyps filling about 50% or more of the nose, the air in the nasal cavity is blocked and does not reach the area where the smell nerves are located. In addition, patients with an inflammatory disease (not necessarily due to allergies) in the nose and sinuses may have polyps grow in the nose and sinus. Polyps form as a reaction to inflammation or allergy. The normal mucosa, which is pink, moist, and 1 to 2 millimeters thick, can become swollen with fluids and proteins until it resembles a fluid-filled sac. Polyps arise when the tissue lining the nose, called mucosa, becomes very inflamed and swollen. Frequently Asked Questions What is a polyp? Patients with sleep apnea don’t sleep well, and they are at higher risk for other health problems, including heart disease, heart attack, stroke, and memory and concentration problems. Sometimes nasal polyps can make snoring severe enough to tip a patient who snores over to sleep apnea – which has a substantial effect on patients. Why Diagnosis is Importantīecause patients can’t breathe through their nose, they mouth breathe while sleeping, causing them to snore. They can’t breathe through their nose at all so they breathe through their mouths during the day and at night. When polyps fill the entire nose, patients are miserable. Likewise, treating a patient’s allergies will often cause the polyps to shrink somewhat and may give some relief from the blockage.Īs polyps get larger, filling 75% to 90% of the nasal cavity, patients really start to complain of nasal obstruction, and this often motivates them to seek medical care. In general, as polyps swell or get larger, they start to fill the nose and cause nasal blockage or obstruction, which some patients refer to as “congestion.”įor a person with allergies and polyps, a “bad allergy day” will frequently cause the polyps to swell more and cause more symptoms. in general, this condition accounts for a large portion of the sinus surgery performed. In the Michigan area, and probably in the U.S.

Chronic sinusitis with polyps is an inflammation of the sinuses that lasts more than 12 weeks and is associated with nasal polyps.

Nasal mucus plug