help for constant sniffling

[serious16]

my 6 yo son has been sniffling constantly for the last three months.  He is allergic to dust and tree pollens.  He has been to the allergy doctor who has prescribed fluticasone and certrizine.  He has seen a pediatrician who has said maybe a sinus infection and given antibiotics.  He also had an x-ray at the allergy doctor's office.  We are going to see the ENT in two days.  I don't know if it's a tic?  He says he can't breathe well.  His left nostril seems more clogged than the right.  It's hard to listen to him suck in air very loudly 100 plus times a day.  He even does it a few times during his sleep.  We are worried it will be very distracting in school.  He doesn't do it when preocuppied with something, like knee hockey. Any ideas?

[anw88]

I have had this problem since I was in last year of primary school. I don't know what it it or how it started, I got told I was distracting people in lessons with it so the teacher told my parents. I'm 27 now and still do it, it's as if my nose if closing up and I need to sniff to breathe even though there's nothing there, it's so annoying and gets me down so I try to not do it but puts my mind on it more, I usually don't do it when preoccupied with other things too. Does anyone have any tips or advice to help me out? I've used nasal sprays and been to ent and have a camera up my nose but they couldn't see anything.

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

His difficulty breathing could be due to allergic rhinitis, in which the symptoms occur in response to a trigger, like eating spicy food or going outside in the cold.  The primary treatment is simply avoiding the things that trigger your symptoms. It is often treated with a drying nasal spray (like Atrovent) and antihistamines are effective. Nasal decongestant drops too relieve congestion. Discuss these options with your consulting doctor.


Hope this helped and do keep us posted.