>>Dr. Lamperti: I’m here today to talk a
little bit about the optimal ways to use your nasal steroid spray. In my career as a nose
specialist and rhinoplasty surgeon I also find people who have functional issues with
their nose. Certainly allergies and the like — often patients are placed on nasal steroid
sprays to help with these symptoms. There are often some ideal ways of using the spray
that often we as doctors fail to mention or bring up to patients. First, you really have
to use it daily. It doesn’t work well every third day, every other day, once a week. It
really takes a consistent use and finding it as part of your routine. Doing it after
you brush your teeth after you shower. Those are ways that I find that help with patients
remembering to use their spray. Additionally, patients need to realize that the spray doesn’t
work very fast. I takes a good month or so until the medicine starts working. And so
after a week or two if you don’t find much effect, well that’s because it hasn’t really
started working yet. So really keep with it. I tell patients to use it for 2 or 3 months
to really give it a fair shot to see if it improves your symptoms at all. A few other
tips that I give patients that I prescribe the medications to is how to hold the medicine
and to really apply it. So I’ll show you. The first is to use your right hand when spraying
your left nostril and then switch hands and use your left hand to spray your right. And
naturally what happens when you hold it that way is that you angle the nozzle a little
bit off center so it doesn’t hit your septum and that is really what often causes nose
bleeds and irritation and is another reason patient often stop using the medicine. The
last trick that I have is to hold the bottle upright facing the ceiling and then tilt your
head forward and downward like that and that gives a natural trajectory where the medicine
will get to the back of the nose, really apply the medicine ideally versus using it like
this which patients often will do. And the spray will hit the top of the nose and dribble
back out and really just end up irritating the top of your nose. And lastly a lot of patients say “You know
what Dr. Lamperti I’m using the spray just like you said and I don’t really like the
taste or smell of the medication. It doesn’t agree with me.” There are various medications
available and they do have different scents. Some people don’t really care, they’re just
happy that it works for them and others are really bothered by it. And that’s fine. It’s
really something that you should talk to your doctor about. And there are different alternatives.
They don’t all smell the same or work the same — with regard to irritating perhaps.
Most people tolerate them fine if used right, really talk to your doctor about switching
to an alternative medication if you don’t tolerate the initial choice.
www.drlamperti.com
Does this nasal spray work to cure mucous or phlegm?
This standard advising just to tilt head forward yet keep the spray vertical, never works in reality – patients don't tilt the head far enough forward and the spray gets aimed on the underside of the external nostril (common speech describes things going "up" the nose ratehr than correctly as backward through the nose). Yes the head needs tilting forward a little, but also the spray should be pointed slightly backwards, the combination should have the spray pointing to just above the ear.
@bi1iruben But I'm using it to unclog my ears (prescribed by doctor) Would I need to get the spray as low as possible through the nose to hit the eustachian tubes?
Surely if you point the spray away from the septum, its just going to splatter against the nose and run out?
You just need to angle it a little bit away from the septum. It should travel back in the nose properly this way.
I was diagnosed to have allergic rhinitis and was prescribed Fluticasone nasal spray. Thank you Dr. Lambert for this video.
I'm glad you found the video helpful!
Thanks for checking the video out!
I am really not sure I wanna use my nasal spray for 2-3mths coz the steroid frightens me. It is normally prescribed to me for my blocked Eustachian tube but I get other medications as well. In 2 wks, I get cured. I am not prescribed antibiotics coz I am allergic to them. But being a lefty, I have difficulty using the nasal spray with a lever that has to be pressed at the side.
Thank you – was worried that it wasn't working or blocked ear and allergies, I have been using this for a week. I'll keep at it.
My Doctor prescribed this for me today. this video is helpful. thank you Doctor.
my baby girl, she's 4 years old and was prescribed omnaris with dosis of 50mcg 1 spray per nostril once a day. I was actually reading that it should not be used under the age of 6 and i'm kind of freaking out here because of all the side effects it has.
my girls has some trouble breathing when she sleeps and she breaths through her mouth. should i continue giving her the med or not? I would really appreciate if you could enlight me here.
Months, are you kidding? How do you even know the spray is even working?
my doctor told be to spray this into the sides of my nostrils and massage it in. He said if you taste it. You waste it. Does that make sense? It does help greatly with my cat allergies. Not i initially thought i was supposed to sniff it up. Like nasal spray.
Omnaris? or Avamys? which do you think is safer?… thanks Doc
Thank you Dr. Lamperti! This is really helpful.
I understand this med may take months to work, but personally I have experienced great relief almost immediately. I've learned the hard way that maintaining sinus health takes discipline, but it is well worth the effort.
ive got extreme deviated septium is there any point using this??? there is literally, physically. absolutely complete blockage in the left nostril because of this deviation.
is flonase safe? I'm 23 and have really bad allergies