There are many types and causes of a runny nose. Most people have experienced the short-term runny nose that accompanies a cold or bout with allergies. Those typically clear up on their own or with the help of over-the-counter allergy medications. Then there is the everyday constant runny nose, where you have to always grab a tissue. The condition is often worse while eating or going in and out of buildings where there are temperature changes. This is typically caused by an overactive nerve inside your nose that makes it run all the time.
Treatment for this is a simple in-office procedure called posterior nasal nerve ablation. Watch this short video demonstrating how the procedure works.
Runny Nose
Typically, a runny nose is caused by chronic rhinitis. There are many causes of chronic rhinitis, including allergies, irritation of the lining inside your nose, and nasal motor rhinitis, which is hyperactivity of a nerve inside your nose that makes your nose run all the time.
Post-Nasal Drainage
Mucus is usually swallowed throughout the day without you ever even knowing. But for people with post-nasal drainage (PND), it can be very problematic. Whatever the cause, it can lead to throat irritation, chronic cough, sinus problems, and more.
Post-nasal drainage is chronic drainage down the back of the throat, often associated with hoarseness, cough, clearing throat, etc. Some patients experience only a couple hours of PND in the morning; others suffer from it 24 hours a day. There are many causes of PND. The four most common causes are: having a chronic sinus infection, allergies, laryngopharyngeal reflux, and chronic rhinitis. The excessive drainage is caused by an overactive nerve in your nose that is telling your nose to produce more and more mucus.
Treatment
Treatment is sometimes successful with oral medications, antihistamine nasal sprays, or nasal sprays, which act as drying agents. When these are not successful, there are surgical options such as Clarifix, an in-office procedure that's very simple. It involves freezing the overactive nerve on each side of your nose for about 30 seconds in an effort to block the signals it's sending to your nose that's causing it to run all the time.