It’s common for noses to run in the cooler weather or when allergy season comes around, but an American man recently got the shock of his life when he discovered his runny nose was actually fluid leaking from his brain.
Speaking to ABC 11 in the United States, Johnston Country man Greg Phillpotts explained that his family’s Thanksgiving dinner last year was ruined when fluid from his nose ran all over the food. It wasn’t the first time the fluid had burst out of his nostrils, with Phillpotts noting he could be on a plane or talking to somebody when the liquid would randomly and unexpectedly start flowing out.
He had been experiencing symptoms for five years and originally thought he was simply living with allergies. Doctors had even diagnosed him with pneumonia and bronchitis. The only way Phillpotts knew how to manage his runny nose was by stuffing tissues up his nostrils.
“It became normal up until February because I was up all night coughing,” he explained to the network. “You’re sitting here, you’re a family man; you don’t want to check out of the picture when it’s something someone could readily fix.”
Eventually he met with a doctor at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York and quickly discovered his runny nose wasn’t the result of allergies, pneumonia or bronchitis, but rather cerebrospinal fluid leak.
Cerebrospinal fluid leak is a condition where cerebrospinal fluid that surrounds the human brain and spinal cord begins to leak away from the area. The fluid typically protects and cushions the brain from shock or trauma and it is thought Phillpotts developed the issue after a previous head injury.
Also speaking to ABC 11, Phillpotts’ doctor Alfred Iloreta said the condition can cause an ascending infection where bacteria can travel from the nose to the brain and cause meningitis. According to the report, the condition can be fixed by performing minimally invasive skull surgery where a flap of tissue harvested from the body can correct the problem.
Phillpotts underwent the surgery and said it felt as though he could breathe suddenly again after his problem was corrected.
“Have you ever been so congested that you can’t breathe?” he said. “All of sudden you can breathe again and what a relief that was.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83VUPgPVcZU
Doctors warned that a typically symptom of cerebrospinal fluid leak is if a person experience a runny nose on one side, if there’s a salty taste and also an intense headache. If experiencing symptoms, it’s always best to speak with a GP or health professional.