Nasal Douching

This leaflet explains how to perform nasal saline douching, a treatment for chronic rhinosinusitis and for treatment of the nose after surgery. The leaflet will explain how to make up a solution for use at home.

What is nasal douching?

The term douching means showering, and nasal douching is a technique to clean out the nose to help manage certain nasal conditions. It can also be used after surgery to help aid recovery and maintain a clear nasal passage. A salty water solution is applied to the inside of the nose with a syringe or bottle to perform the washing. It can also be called nasal irrigation or nasal rinsing.

Why do I need to perform nasal douching?

You have been recommended nasal douching by your doctor to help manage your nasal condition. Nasal douching has been found to be beneficial in conditions of the nose where allergy and inflammation play a role. Nasal douching can help remove thickened mucus which can contain allergens and inflammatory mediators (substances which cause the lining of the nose to swell) thus reducing the symptoms from chronic rhinosinusitis and allergic rhinosinusitis.

Nasal douching is often recommended after surgery to the nose and sinuses. After surgery mucus can build up within the nasal cavity and sometimes this can lead to crusts forming. These crusts may interfere with healing and can also cause infections. Nasal douching can help wash these away and promote healing inside your nose after your procedure. It will also help remove any blood clots from the nose after surgery.

How do I perform nasal douching?

It is usually recommended to perform nasal douching three times a day, but your doctors will let you know their recommendation for you.
First you will need to make up a solution to perform the douching:

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1 pint (approximately 600mls) of boiled water which has been allowed to cool (to
  body temperature).

Mix the above ingredients together in a clean container ensuring the dry ingredients have dissolved into the water. Take a syringe and draw up some solution and gently dispense this into the nostril. It is best to do this over a sink or bowl.

Do not worry if you swallow some of the solution as it is entirely harmless. Continue until no further debris comes out of your nose and then repeat on the other nostril.

One alternative is to use NeilMed sinus rinse which has a squeezy bottle for application rather than a syringe, and the dry ingredients are supplied in a sachet to add to water for convenience. This is widely available at high street pharmacies and online.

A further alternative is Sterimar spray where the solution is pre-made in a spray bottle for ease of use and application. This is available on prescription or over the counter.

Further information

We hope that you have found this information useful. If you have any questions or are worried about anything, please contact the department on 01305 253167 / 255138 / 255510.

About this leaflet

Author: Ms Victoria Wilmot, Consultant ENT Surgeon
Written: December 2022
Approved: February 2023
Review date: February 2026
Edition: v1

If you have feedback regarding the accuracy of the information contained in this leaflet, or if you would like a list of references used to develop this leaflet, please email patientinformation.leaflets@dchft.nhs.uk