What’s Sinus Irrigation?
May 05, 2016
Sinus irrigation is exactly what it sounds like: a process of rinsing your sinuses to loosen and dissolve hardened mucus.
Why would you want to irrigate your sinuses? Because when mucus becomes overly thick or dried out, it can stop draining properly, leading to a painful buildup of pressure known as sinus pain or sinus headache. Irrigation can get things moving again.
Sinus irrigation comes in many forms, but the most popular is a surprisingly primitive yet effective device known as the neti pot. Typically shaped like a small teapot, the neti pot is filled with warm saline and poured into one nostril with the head held at a downward angle. Gravity does the rest: the water gushes through your nasal and maxillary sinuses and out the other side, loosening and improving your mucus flow in the process. (Other popular devices include spray bottles that strike the mucus with some velocity, which may be preferable under certain circumstances.)
The most essential part of nasal irrigation is ensuring that the water you use is distilled. Too many news reports have found cases of tap water that led to dangerous infections.
To learn more about neti pots and how you can graduate to a more aggressive approach, call the Los Angeles Sinus Institute today.