ELI5: deviates nasal septum

// eli5

What is a deviated nasal septum?

Your nose has a wall in the middle made of bone and cartilage that separates your left and right nostrils—kind of like a fence dividing two rooms [1]. A deviated septum means that fence is crooked or off-center instead of being straight down the middle [1][5].

Why does it happen?

You can be born with a crooked septum, or it can happen if you get hit in the nose during a fall or accident [1][5]. Either way, the wall inside your nose shifts to one side.

What does it feel like?

When your septum is deviated, it can make it harder to breathe through one or both nostrils because the crooked wall is blocking the airflow [5]. Some people also get nosebleeds or feel stuffy all the time [2].

How do you fix it?

If it's not bothering you much, you don't need to do anything [3]. But if breathing is really difficult, a doctor can do surgery called septoplasty to straighten it out [6].