Odd swelling on one side of nose.

[E.Smith]

I'm a 35 year old male and I rarely get sick. But on the 30th of December 06' I ended up with an unusually bad cold. Heavier congestion than I have ever experienced before, and ended up blowing my nose with such effort that air came through the area around my left eye. By the afternoon of January 2nd I felt much better, but happened to notice an unusual swelling on the left side of my nose. It's been over two weeks now, and the swelling does not seem to have diminished.

There is no pain or unusual symptoms. My breathing seems unaffected, though it may be slightly more difficult to breath on the left side. No congestion.

The swelling is on the left side between the nostril and tip of my nose, from the bottom edge near the nostril opening to about halfway up my nose, about the width of a pencil. Examining the inside with a q-tip, there seems to be corresponding swelling on the interior of the nose, but it is fairly minor. I can only tell that it is swollen when I compare it to the other nostril.

The skin does seem to shift very slightly over the surface of the swollen area, but it is very minor. When I grip the swollen area from both the inside and outside, there is no sensation other than somewhat thicker, perhaps slightly spongy flesh than the other, non-swollen side. I've tried both hot and cold compress with no lasting effect.  

Any advice or theories as to what this swelling is would be greatly appreciated.

[E.Smith]

This swelling is unchanged. It may even be slightly worse. Any other opinions?

[E.Smith]

That's a good thought. Thanks for replying. My girlfriend had much the same opinion, but I really thought there would be some pain associated with such a condition. If you don't mind me asking, when it happened to you, was there pain, and how long did the swelling last?

[asymptomaddict]

I have had similar swelling before, and found it was caused by a hair follicle getting infected after the hair inside my nostril was yanked out - maybe you lost a nosehair or three blowing your nose vigorously during the cold?