Treatment for a severely broken nose

If your nose is crooked or the skin is broken, you'll probably need to be assessed and treated in hospital.

A doctor may be able to realign your nose using special instruments under general anaesthetic (where youre asleep) or sometimes a local anaesthetic (where the nose is numbed). You may need to return after a few days when the swelling has gone down before this can be carried out, but it should ideally be done within 14 days of the injury.

If necessary, it may be possible to have a procedure to improve the appearance of your nose at a later stage, but this is generally more difficult and less successful than early treatment.

Any broken skin will need to be closed with stitches or adhesive strips. If your nose is bleeding continuously, a doctor may pack your nose with a soft gauze pad to stop it. This will be removed by your doctor in a few days.

Your doctor will let you know about any activities you need to avoid while you recover and whether you need to see a specialist for a follow-up appointment to check that the bones are healing in the correct position.