Nasal irrigation with salt

Nasal lavage or washing the nose with salt, or more precisely, its solution, is a procedure during which the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses are cleared of excess mucus, settled foreign particles (including xenobiotics), as well as microbes and viruses that cause a runny nose.

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Indications and contraindications

The mucous epithelium of the nasal cavity, which has ciliated cells and mucous secretion, is the protective system of the human respiratory system – mucociliary clearance, due to which the inhaled air is cleaned and moistened. In order for the nose to perform its protective functions, its mucous membrane must be clean, and the ciliary (motor) activity of the ciliated cells must be high. This is facilitated by periodic rinsing of the nose with salt.

Washing the nose with salt is especially useful for a runny nose, since acute inflammation of the nasal mucosa during this period leads to a weakening of the ciliary activity of the cilia and significantly reduces its protective properties. As a result, bacteria and viruses linger on the mucous membrane of the nasal cavity, causing an infectious lesion of its cells.

In otolaryngology, there are the following indications for this procedure:

• nasopharyngitis (ARI or acute viral rhinitis);
• acute and chronic sinusitis;
• sinusitis;
• allergic rhinitis (hay fever);
• atrophic rhinitis.

Nasal lavage also has contraindications, in particular, it is not recommended to wash the nose if the patency of the nasal passages is obstructed (including choanal atresia); in the presence of adenoma, papilloma or osteoma of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses; in acute and chronic forms of otitis, as well as a tendency to nosebleeds.

Preparing for a Salt Nasal Rinse

Preparation for this procedure comes down to preparing all the necessary devices and a solution for rinsing. Of the devices for this procedure, a syringe or a syringe without a needle is used, for those familiar with yoga techniques - a classic small teapot.

You will also need distilled or purified boiled water heated to +37°C, a glass, a teaspoon and table salt.

Why is table salt used for rinsing the nose? The mucous membrane and mucous secretion of the nasal cavity normally have a pH of 5.5-6; as soon as the acidity shifts towards OH (pH 6.5-7.8), the ciliated cells stop working, and pathogenic microbes settle in the nasal cavity, causing a runny nose. A solution of table salt, firstly, has a certain antiseptic effect, and, secondly, helps to reduce the pH level, that is, it helps to restore the protective properties of the mucociliary system.

What are the proportions of salt and water for nasal irrigation?

For daily hygienic rinsing, prepare a 0.9% isotonic solution of sodium chloride: dissolve 9 g of sodium chloride in one liter of water. If you need to rinse your nose with salt for sinusitis or in cases of acute bacterial sinusitis, you need a 5-10% hypertonic solution: 5 g of salt (half a teaspoon) or 10 g of salt (a teaspoon) per 100 ml of water.

In case of heavy nasal discharge, rinsing the nose with soda and salt helps: 1/3 part of baking soda and 2/3 of table salt or 1:1. Soda dries out the mucous membrane, so it is not recommended to do such procedures more than once a day (for 4-5 days). Otolaryngologists advise adding three drops of iodine per glass to the lavage solution: such rinsing of the nose with iodine and salt is suitable for chronic sinusitis, nasopharyngitis and sinusitis with the presence of pus in the nasal discharge.

Sea salt is also used for rinsing the nose (you need to take food salt, not for baths). The iodine content enhances its antibacterial effect. In addition, in addition to NaCl, sea salt contains sodium sulfates, chlorides and sulfates of potassium, calcium and magnesium. Potassium compounds regulate the acidity level of the mucous membranes, calcium strengthens the membranes of the mucous epithelium cells in the nasal cavity, and magnesium helps restore the ciliary cells of the mucous membrane.

And the last thing about what kind of salt can be used for rinsing. The company Jadran Galenski Laboratorij (Croatia) produces a series of nasal products from the water of the Adriatic Sea - Aqua Maris, including Aquamaris salt for rinsing the nose. Experts note that the salinity of the water of the Adriatic Sea is lower than in the Mediterranean, since it is diluted with fresh water from several tributary rivers.

And Achilles salt for washing the nose, produced in Solikamsk (RF) and declared as "sea salt of the ancient Permian Sea", is a fossil rock salt (halite), formed in the Permian geological period of the Paleozoic (252-298 million years ago) on the site of an ancient ocean. Having a marine origin, all the rock (aka table) salt we use has retained only NaCl in its composition for hundreds of millions of years.

Salt Nasal Wash Technique

Rinsing the nose with salt for a runny nose is done for each nasal passage in turn (you cannot draw in or pour the solution into both nostrils at the same time).

The simplest technique for rinsing your nose with salt: take a handful of the solution (temperature +35-37°C), pinch one nostril with your finger, lean over the sink, bring the solution to the free nostril and inhale, draw it into your nose. Keep your mouth slightly open so that the water flows out freely. Then exhale through the nostril. The second nasal passage is washed in the same way.

It is convenient to wash the nose with a small syringe or syringe, into which the solution is drawn and also alternately injected into the nasal passages (water should also pour out through the mouth). It should be borne in mind that the stream of liquid supplied should not be strong - so that the solution does not get into the auditory (Eustachian) tubes connecting the nasopharynx and middle ear, the openings of which are located on the lateral walls of the nasopharynx.

It is recommended to rinse the nose with salt for sinusitis using a teapot, in which the solution is filled. Standing in front of the sink, tilt your head forward and turn slightly to the side: when rinsing the right nasal passage - to the left, for the left - to the right (that is, the nostril being washed should be higher). When inhaling and holding your breath, the solution is poured through the spout of the teapot into the upper nostril, and flows out of the opposite one by gravity. Remove the remaining solution by blowing your nose: first with your head tilted, and then straightening your neck. The second nasal passage is washed in a similar way.

ENT doctors warn: after this procedure you cannot leave the room immediately. In the cold season, you need to wait at least two to three hours, if it is warm outside - at least 40-45 minutes.

In addition, if rinsing the nose with salt is done incorrectly, complications may arise, which are expressed in the development of inflammation of the middle ear - otitis.