Nasal foreign bodies are found occasionally in young children, the intellectually impaired, and patients with psychiatric conditions. Common objects pushed into the nose include cotton, paper, pebbles, beads, beans, seeds, nuts, insects, and button batteries (which may cause chemical burns). When mineral salts are deposited on a long-retained foreign body, the object is called a rhinolith.
A nasal foreign body is suspected in any patient with a unilateral, foul-smelling, bloody, purulent rhinorrhea. Diagnosis is often made through another party’s observation of the item being pushed into the nose or through visualization with a nasal speculum.
Nasal foreign bodies can sometimes be removed in the office with a nasal speculum and Hartmann nasal forceps (see How To Remove a Foreign Body from the Nose
