Signs That You May Have A Broken Nose

It's easy to panic and think that your nose is broken when you suffer any type of impact to the face, whether it's an incident while you're playing sports, an accident on the job, or even a vehicle collision. While you should do your best to stay calm in such a moment, you should also consider a few common signs that your nose is indeed broken. In many cases, a blow to the nose will hurt for a short period of time, but the pain will soon subside because there's no major injury. If you've noticed some signs that indicate a broken nose, you can visit a local urgent care clinic.

Visual Change 

Often, a good way to tell that you've broken your nose is that there's an obvious visual change in how it looks now versus how it looked prior to the impact. For example, the nose may be shifted to either side of your face or may have a twist in it. If you're with people—teammates during a game you're playing, for example—you can expect that they'll be quick to tell you if they've noticed this difference. If you're on your own, seek out a mirror or use your phone's camera to check the appearance of your nose.

Breathing Difficulties

Another indicator that you could have a broken nose is that you have trouble breathing. Damage to the interior of the nose and the swelling that often occurs after a hard impact can reduce the nasal openings to some degree, limiting the amount of oxygen you're able to inhale. While you'll still be able to successfully breathe through your mouth, you might be aware that your nose breathing is compromised to some degree.

Swelling And Pain

Any impact to your nose will often cause some level of swelling, but broken noses tend to cause a lot of swelling. You'll often find that there's not only swelling on your nose itself but also on each side of the nose. A high level of pain will often accompany the swelling. You'll find that even touching the area gently makes the pain worse.

If you have these symptoms, there's no need to wait to see if they improve over the course of the next few hours. Don't hesitate to figure out the location of the nearest urgent care clinic to where you've been injured, and visit for an assessment and care.

Contact a local urgent care to learn more. 

Share