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Most cases of runny nose do not come from a cerebrospinal fluid leak (CSF). (Photo: Getty Images)Getty
This is not snot. There is a leak of cerebral fluid.
That's what Greg Phillpotts learned after suffering from a runny nose for 5 years, as described by Josh Chapin for ABC 11 Eyewitness News. Here is a Tweet of Chapin:
He thought it was just allergies or even just a runny nose. It turned out he needed surgery. It's next door at 11am # ABC11 @MountSinaiNYC pic.twitter.com/Z5ZsU5s3G2
– Josh Chapin (@ JoshChapinABC11) November 16, 2018
It turned out that Phillpotts did not have constant allergies, as had been said before. Instead, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flowed through his nose. CSF is a fluid that surrounds your brain and spinal cord, cushioning, protecting and supporting these parts of the body. The LCR is one of the reasons why your brain does not reach a dull sound every time you jump in obstacles or do not listen to Metallica. Normally, the membranes keep the CSF contained, much like a large water balloon around the brain and spinal cord. However, anything that can damage the membranes, such as a head injury, operation, or tumor, can leave a hole through which fluid can leak, potentially into the nose or ears.
Here is a segment of today's show about another person who has had a somewhat similar experience:
As you can see, such a condition can be misdiagnosed for years. Indeed, "leakage of cerebral fluid" is not usually the first thing you think about when you have a runny nose. Usually it's cold, the time it's done, allergies, cheap cologne, watching too many romantic comedy movies or that fucking cat. After all, the condition is very rare. However, consider the possibility of a CSF leak if you find the following:
- The liquid comes out only from one nostril or one ear. Allergies tend to be a more equal chance and affect all your nasal passages or both ears.
- The leak lasts a long time. A cold or the effects of a romantic comedy should not last several years, at least not continuously.
- Tipping the head forward or forcing aggravates the drainage. This could make toilet trips particularly fun.
- Drainage started after trauma to the head or surgery. There is not always a clear cause of the defect or drainage, but check what you did before drainage started.
- The drainage does not change with the seasons or the location. Allergy symptoms may prove Mr. Bigglesworth right, but not a cerebrospinal fluid leak.
- The drainage volume is greater than what you might expect from a cold or allergy. If you wake up and your shirt or pillowcase is soaked, you risk more than what you can expect in case of allergy or infection.
- You have headaches or changes in vision or hearing. Of course, this can happen in other conditions. But such symptoms should warrant further exploration.
As the Cleveland Clinic describes, your doctor can look for a cerebrospinal fluid leak by leaning forward to see if drainage is increasing, using an oscilloscope to examine your nasal passages, ordering imaging such as a CT scan or an MRI, and testing it looks like the CSF. If a cerebrospinal fluid leak has recently begun to appear, your doctor may recommend a more conservative approach, giving the defect time to heal on its own. It means staying in bed for a week or two and avoiding movements that might prevent the defect from coughing up, sneezing, straining or laughing. Therefore, you may want to take softeners for stool and limit your TV to watch C-SPAN.
If conservative approaches do not resolve the leak, surgery may be required. Depending on the location of the defect, your doctor may be able to fix it using a sighting device.
You do not want to let a leak of LCR continue without repairing it. As one of the surgeons said in this segment of the TV show botched, "the brain fluid coming out of the nose is a major concern":
There are very few sentences with the words "brain" and "out of the nose" that should not cause concern. Any defect in the membranes surrounding and protecting the brain and spinal cord can serve as a revolving door for bacteria and other microbes. These microbes can cause very serious, sometimes fatal infections, such as meningitis. In addition, CSF leaks can evolve into more debilitating symptoms or even stroke.
As KidsHealth pointed out, there is an old joke that says if your nose is running and your feet are feeling, you have to be upside down. Well, if your nose continues to leak for weeks or months, consult your doctor because something is not feeling good.
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Most cases of runny nose do not come from a cerebrospinal fluid leak (CSF). (Photo: Getty Images)Getty
This is not snot. There is a leak of cerebral fluid.
That's what Greg Phillpotts learned after suffering from a runny nose for 5 years, as described by Josh Chapin for ABC 11 Eyewitness News. Here is a Tweet of Chapin:
He thought it was just allergies or even just a runny nose. It turned out he needed surgery. It's next door at 11am # ABC11 @MountSinaiNYC pic.twitter.com/Z5ZsU5s3G2
– Josh Chapin (@ JoshChapinABC11) November 16, 2018
It turned out that Phillpotts did not have constant allergies, as had been said before. Instead, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) flowed through his nose. CSF is a fluid that surrounds your brain and spinal cord, cushioning, protecting and supporting these parts of the body. The LCR is one of the reasons why your brain does not reach a dull sound every time you jump in obstacles or do not listen to Metallica. Normally, the membranes keep the CSF contained, much like a large water balloon around the brain and spinal cord. However, anything that can damage the membranes, such as a head injury, operation, or tumor, can leave a hole through which fluid can leak, potentially into the nose or ears.
Here is a segment of today's show about another person who has had a somewhat similar experience:
As you can see, such a condition can be misdiagnosed for years. Indeed, "leakage of cerebral fluid" is not usually the first thing you think about when you have a runny nose. Usually it's cold, the time it's done, allergies, cheap cologne, watching too many romantic comedy movies or that fucking cat. After all, the condition is very rare. However, consider the possibility of a CSF leak if you find the following:
- The liquid comes out only from one nostril or one ear. Allergies tend to be a more equal chance and affect all your nasal passages or both ears.
- The leak lasts a long time. A cold or the effects of a romantic comedy should not last several years, at least not continuously.
- Tipping the head forward or forcing aggravates the drainage. This could make toilet trips particularly fun.
- Drainage started after trauma to the head or surgery. There is not always a clear cause of the defect or drainage, but check what you did before drainage started.
- The drainage does not change with the seasons or the location. Allergy symptoms may prove Mr. Bigglesworth right, but not a cerebrospinal fluid leak.
- The drainage volume is greater than what you might expect from a cold or allergy. If you wake up and your shirt or pillowcase is soaked, you risk more than what you can expect in case of allergy or infection.
- You have headaches or changes in vision or hearing. Of course, this can happen in other conditions. But such symptoms should warrant further exploration.
As the Cleveland Clinic describes, your doctor can look for a cerebrospinal fluid leak by leaning forward to see if drainage is increasing, using an oscilloscope to examine your nasal passages, ordering imaging such as a CT scan or an MRI, and testing it looks like the CSF. If a cerebrospinal fluid leak has recently begun to appear, your doctor may recommend a more conservative approach, giving the defect time to heal on its own. It means staying in bed for a week or two and avoiding movements that might prevent the defect from coughing up, sneezing, straining or laughing. Therefore, you may want to take softeners for stool and limit your TV to watch C-SPAN.
If conservative approaches do not resolve the leak, surgery may be required. Depending on the location of the defect, your doctor may be able to fix it using a sighting device.
You do not want to let a leak of LCR continue without repairing it. As one of the surgeons said in this segment of the TV show botched, "the brain fluid coming out of the nose is a major concern":
There are very few sentences with the words "brain" and "out of the nose" that should not cause concern. Any defect in the membranes surrounding and protecting the brain and spinal cord can serve as a revolving door for bacteria and other microbes. These microbes can cause very serious, sometimes fatal infections, such as meningitis. In addition, CSF leaks can evolve into more debilitating symptoms or even stroke.
As KidsHealth pointed out, there is an old joke that says if your nose is running and your feet are feeling, you have to be upside down. Well, if your nose continues to leak for weeks or months, consult your doctor because something is not feeling good.
