Nose Bleed Treatments

Self-Care

1. Stay calm.
2. Sit up and lean forward.
3. Pinch the soft parts of your nose together and hold for ten minutes without releasing pressure.
4. You may want to place a cotton ball soaked with a decongestant spray, like Afrin or Neo-Synephrine, in the nostril before pinching.
5. Place a bag of crushed ice, wrapped in a cloth, or a cold washcloth on the nose and cheeks.
6. Once the bleeding stops, do not pick or blow your nose.
7. Avoid straining, bending, or lifting.
8. Sit up. If the bleeding starts again, try to remove clots.
9. Spray a nasal decongestant four times into each nostril before pinching and holding.

Medical Intervention

For an anterior nosebleed, the doctor will place a compress soaked in a medication that constricts or shrinks the blood vessel and reduces the pain. Pressure will be applied by pinching the nostrils together. The doctor may pack the area with gauze. In more severe cases, the doctor may cauterize, or seal off, a blood vessel that does not clot on its own.

A posterior nosebleed may require inserting and inflating a special balloon that applies pressure on the area. If all medical attempts to control bleeding fail, surgery may be needed.