Thursday, October 15, 2009

Rhinolith



Rhinolith is literally translated as a "Nose stone". It is a calcification found inside the nasal cavity caused from the accumulation of mineral salt (from tears or nasal drainage) that forms around either a exogenous object, such as a piece of cloth or foreign body, or as an Endogenous object, which could be a blood clot or a lump of mucus. The material hardens and as the mineral salt adds to it, it gets larger causing the patient to have difficulty breathing and some pain. Females are more prone to getting a rhinolith.

Treatment for a rhinolith is simple. The stone is taken out in surgery and if the stone is large enough, it is broken up into pieces and then taken out.

Here are some pictures I found on the websites below. It is amazing to see how big "nose stones" get.

References:

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Rhinolith-a01073751348

http://www.scielo.br (picture #1)

http://www.ghorayeb.com/Rhinolith.html (picture #2)

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