Hypertonic saline via a nebulizer - tried this?
Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2024 12:14 am
Many of us with BB suffer from excessive nasal mucous secretions and post-nasal drip. Bacteria grow in the stagnant secretions, causing the odor. I have recently had good results using a nebulizer with hypertonic saline. Hypertonic means saltier than the normal bodily fluids. The theory is that fluids will be drawn out of congested nasal tissues by osmosis. This will thin the secretions and help clear them out of the nasal passages.
This approach was inspired by the treatment of some lung conditions marked by excessive and immobile mucus (cystic fibrosis, COPD, etc). They use 3% to 6% saline in that context. You can make the solution very easily and cheaply. It is salt plus sodium bicarbonate. I have been using 6 - 8 of the little NeilMed packets per 500 ml of water to make a 2% to 3% solution. Then 20 minutes of nebulizer time, as many times a day as I can manage.
There are some posts on this forum referencing nebulizers, but I didn't see any discussion of the hypertonic saline.I had originally tried various amounts of iodine and hydrogen peroxide, but those made things worse. Even a plain steam inhaler seemed to make things worse, but the saline is working well.
It remains to be seen if this clears up the odour as well (I have never been able to detect it), but even now I am happy to have made some progress.
This approach was inspired by the treatment of some lung conditions marked by excessive and immobile mucus (cystic fibrosis, COPD, etc). They use 3% to 6% saline in that context. You can make the solution very easily and cheaply. It is salt plus sodium bicarbonate. I have been using 6 - 8 of the little NeilMed packets per 500 ml of water to make a 2% to 3% solution. Then 20 minutes of nebulizer time, as many times a day as I can manage.
There are some posts on this forum referencing nebulizers, but I didn't see any discussion of the hypertonic saline.I had originally tried various amounts of iodine and hydrogen peroxide, but those made things worse. Even a plain steam inhaler seemed to make things worse, but the saline is working well.
It remains to be seen if this clears up the odour as well (I have never been able to detect it), but even now I am happy to have made some progress.