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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Can Use Of Afrin For Congested Bronchial Tubes Cause Swelling In Nostrils?

I have been having issues with congestion in my upper bronchial tubes. I take afrin in the morning and at night. After about 8 hours my nostrils start swelling again. Typical. My question is can afrin do that to my bronchial tubes? I inhale it in my nose but some of it, I m sure, gets in my lungs. Right?
Mon, 14 Feb 2022
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Internal Medicine Specialist,  's  Response
Hi,

AFRIN is a great medication for temporary relief of nasal congestion, be careful not to use this for more than 3-4 days continuously or else the nasal passages start to become dependent on the AFRIN and it loses it effect. Regarding the question, I have not heard of AFRIN specifically causes bronchial congestion, it is mainly a blood vessel constrictor, so it reduces the size of the arteries in the nose and as a result decreases nasal swelling and congestion.

Assuming some of this drips down the back of the throat, which is common (for me as well), it can potentially if enough gets delivered deep into the bronchial airways cause some surface irritation and that will induce more mucous production, I do have so say that that would involve likely a few drops reaching the airways.

This compound is designed to stay in the nasal region, and it could be rather irritating to the bronchial passages. Another thought to prevent this might be to switch to a nasal steroid like FLONASE, that would prevent the surface irritation and while it does not work as fast it would reduce the odds of this happening.

Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Regards,
Dr. David J. Girardi, Internal Medicine Specialist
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Can Use Of Afrin For Congested Bronchial Tubes Cause Swelling In Nostrils?

Hi, AFRIN is a great medication for temporary relief of nasal congestion, be careful not to use this for more than 3-4 days continuously or else the nasal passages start to become dependent on the AFRIN and it loses it effect. Regarding the question, I have not heard of AFRIN specifically causes bronchial congestion, it is mainly a blood vessel constrictor, so it reduces the size of the arteries in the nose and as a result decreases nasal swelling and congestion. Assuming some of this drips down the back of the throat, which is common (for me as well), it can potentially if enough gets delivered deep into the bronchial airways cause some surface irritation and that will induce more mucous production, I do have so say that that would involve likely a few drops reaching the airways. This compound is designed to stay in the nasal region, and it could be rather irritating to the bronchial passages. Another thought to prevent this might be to switch to a nasal steroid like FLONASE, that would prevent the surface irritation and while it does not work as fast it would reduce the odds of this happening. Take care. Hope I have answered your question. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. David J. Girardi, Internal Medicine Specialist