Nosebleeds are a common problem, especially in children. The commonest cause of nosebleeds is injury to the delicate lining of the nose from picking!
Other causes of nosebleeds include:
- Picking your nose
- Blowing your nose too hard
- High blood pressure
- Blood-thinnning medication (e.g. Warfarin)
- Disorders of the blood e.g. Haemophilia
If you have a nosebleed the treatment is to press the soft part of the nose above the nostrils firmly until the bleeding stops – this may take 10 or 15 minutes.
Occasionally you may have a delicate blood vessel that lies just inside the nostril that bleeds repeatedly; if this is the case the vessel can be sealed with a silver nitrate stick.