Nose bleed packing

[joesxm3]

My 96 year old mother had a severe nose bleed and ended up getting a rhino rocket nose balloon which was just removed by the ENT after 5 days.

He says that there is no active bleeding but there was some abrasion when he removed it that formed a clot that we need to let heal for a week.

I have jacket the humidity up to 40 and he had us get saline spray to do every 4 hours.

He said that if she gets a nose bleed I should pack it with a cotton ball. He said to soak the cotton in Afrin spray. The pharmacist gave me some lame gasoline hcl 0.05% solution that seems to be a decongestant.

Does this sound right? I would have thought to use some sort of clotting agent. Maybe this keeps the cotton from sticking?

He also said to pinch the nostrils and apply an ice pack, but I am a bit confused. Would I pinch even after packing, or would the pinch just be the first easy attempt?

I have a couple nurse friends that I will get in touch with, but figured to throw it out here too.

Thanks.

Joe

 

[pacergal]

AFrin is a decongestant, so would help shrink the blood vessels, thus decrease bleeding.
Ice pack to forehead to reduce/shrink blood vessels feeding the nostril.

My thoughts:
Pinch right away, then while Mom is holding her nose, get the pack and ice ready to apply.
After packing the nostril, I would still pinch and apply the ice.
If still freely bleeding after 10 minutes, call the Dr.

 

[Aerides]

In addition to the humidity settings, consider an room humidifier, especially for next to her bed overnights.

 

[Sunset]

Is she on blood thinners and/or aspirins ?

Maybe that needs to be adjusted

 

[joesxm3]

Thanks.

I have ordered some nose clamps and ice packs.

We do not have central air. We have oil hot water heat which dries things out. I am running two Honeywell wicking humidifiers now. I have a small heating one that I may put closer to her bed at night.

The only blood thinner I can see might be some krill oil that I stopped giving her about 3 weeks ago. She has multiple myeloma, which causes anemia. I will ask the hemotologist if this would also affect clotting factor as well as red blood cell production.

Thanks again. She seems to be doing well but is very tired.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Is she getting enough vitamin K? I have to eat a big salad with lots of greens every day to avoid bleeding issues.

 

[joesxm3]

I don't know how much K that is but her Ensure Plus says 20% K and she drinks 2.

I will ask the PCP, but the ER doc recommended to cut back on her vitamins. He felt there would be too much interaction. Not sure I agree, but it would seem prudent to clarify why she is taking each one. They were added at the nursing home. I think some B group for cognitive function or maybe anemia. Now that we know myeloma, vitamins for anemia may be obsolete.

 

[Happyras]

I had a severe nose bleed a few years ago, just prior to a major vacation I had to cancel day of flights.

You can buy Bleed Cease on Amazon. It is amazing. I was given it after surgery, as my bleed was due to an arterial growth inside the sinus cavity that had to be removed and subsequently cauterized a few times. No bleeding since. I keep Bleed Cease in the drawer. It works as a packing in the nose, or it will stop bleeding of cuts etc. It has a clotting agent on a gauze cloth.

I initially suffered with the nose tampons installed by ER. Horrible treatment....

 

[Luvtoride]

Hi Joe and all. Good advice on several ways to deal with severe nose bleeds.

About 6 months ago, I had a severe nose bleed and I ended up in the hospital (my wife took me to the emergency room in the middle of the night). I am on blood thinners (Xarelto) and it was a very scary experience. The ER doctor did pack both my nostrils with the Rhino packs which did stop the bleeding. I stopped my blood thinners for 3 days and had the packs removed by a great ENT on a Sunday, 3 days after being admitted on Friday AM.
Believe it or not, he recommended using a tampon cut in half, in my nose if the bleeding started again. I'm not familiar with the product mentioned on Amazon, but I'm sure there are other first-aid remedies like that that will work in an emergency.

I took a trip to Italy, 2 months after the nose bleeds and was a bit apprehensive about being in the dry air of an airplane that long, but I had no issues and have had no issues since.
Very scary, but seeking medical attention as soon as possible is recommended if it doesn't stop on its own.

 

[joesxm3]

Does Bleed Cease come out easily?

I had some Quickclot that I learned about in a combat casualty wound care class that I took a while ago. Basically the same sort of thing except for bullet wounds.

Good thing I did not use the Quickclot. My friend told me that the doctor has to cut it loose from the flesh inside the wound.