Nasal Bone Fracture - How To Detect It?

Nasal bone fracture (colloquially termed ‘the broken nose’) is a traumatic injury to one or more bones of the nose, which results in their fracture. The fracture, in turn, restricts several normal and important functions of the nose, such as breathing, smelling and protecting the air passage through secretion of the mucosa, as well as causing added discomfort in the form of bleeding, swelling and pain. Although it can be easily detected, if left untreated, the pain will not alleviate. Therefore, getting a quick diagnosis and necessary treatment is recommended.

Causes of nasal bone fracture:
This condition is caused by a variety of factors, like:

1. Blunt, forceful injury to the area of the nose while playing sports, or during car crashes and falls from high places etc.
2. Falls induced by syncope in the elderly, which is a sudden loss of consciousness and muscle immobilization, during which one might fall to the ground.
3. Fights both with fists and/or with weapons, which might hit the nose and cause potent trauma.

Symptoms of nasal bone fracture:
These are the symptoms by which you can identify whether or not you have a fractured nasal bone:

1. Pain, mostly severe, in the area in and around the nose.
2. Difficulty in breathing.
3. Bleeding, from light to moderate, in the area of the nose.
4. Severe bleeding, if the nasal mucosa has sustained significant damage.
5. A visible deformation of the nose, it becoming crooked, swollen or abnormal in appearance in a general way.
6. Scarring, bruising, blackening and swelling of the region around the eyes too, in some cases if the injury is severe enough.

Diagnosis and treatment of nasal bone fracture:
Most of the fractures are invisible to naked eyes and are detected by physical examination and by X-rays. Generally, accompanying bleeding is also a good indicator of underlying bone fracture. 

Fort treatment, very mild to mild injuries can be left untreated to heal on their own. During diagnosis, it is important to find out whether the fracture is limited to a single bone, in which case it is minor, or has spread to adjoining bones of the face or the nasal septum. In the latter case, surgery is required, which will also require some downtime to heal for you to come back to your daily routine.

In the period immediately following a nasal bone fracture, you are advised to not engage in very physically demanding sports or stay in such situations, which have the potential to cause you injury.

Nasal bone fracture is a condition caused by blunt physical trauma to the nose, which is both easily diagnosable and treatable. In case you are displaying the above symptoms, its best to check with your doctor once and get a diagnosis. That will save significant time and money later on, as, if ignored, this condition may cause complications like any other.