Catarrh is a build-up of mucus in areas such as your nose, throat or sinuses (spaces behind your nose, cheeks and forehead).
Symptoms of catarrh include a blocked or runny nose, needing to clear your throat regularly and a reduced sense of smell.
Catarrh often gets better on its own. Avoiding things that trigger symptoms, drinking plenty of water and rinsing your nose with salty water can help.
Common triggers for catarrh include a cold, hay fever and growths in your nose (nasal polyps).
Read more on the NHS website.
Symptoms of catarrh include a blocked or runny nose, needing to clear your throat regularly and a reduced sense of smell.
Symptoms associated with catarrh
Catarrh can lead to a:
- constant need to clear your throat
- feeling that your throat is blocked
- blocked or stuffy nose that you cannot clear
- runny nose
- feeling of mucus running down the back of your throat
- persistent cough
- headache or facial pain
- reduced sense of smell and taste
- crackling sensation in your ear and some temporary hearing loss
These problems can be frustrating to live with and may affect your sleep, making you feel tired.
Read more on the NHS website.
Catarrh often gets better on its own. Avoiding things that trigger symptoms, drinking plenty of water and rinsing your nose with salty water can help.
Self-care
Catarrh will often pass in a few days or weeks as the condition that causes it improves.
There are things you can try at home to relieve your symptoms, such as:
- avoiding things that trigger your symptoms, such as allergens or smoky places
- taking sips of cold water when you feel the need to clear your throat – constantly clearing your throat may make things worse
- using a saline nasal rinse several times a day – these can be bought from a pharmacy or made at home with half a teaspoon of salt in a pint of boiled water that's been left to cool
- avoiding warm, dry atmospheres, such as places with air conditioning and car heating systems – placing plants or bowls of water in a room may help to keep the air humid
- staying well hydrated
- talking to a pharmacist about suitable over-the-counter medicines – including decongestants, antihistamines or steroid nasal sprays
There are also several remedies, such as herbal medicines, available from health shops and pharmacies that claim to treat catarrh.
Some people find these helpful, but there's generally little scientific evidence to suggest they work.
Read more on the NHS website.
Common triggers for catarrh include a cold, hay fever and growths in your nose (nasal polyps).
Read more on the NHS website.