Best ways to treat a nosebleed

Pediatric Otolaryngologist, Nina Shapiro, MD, shares advice for parents on how to best treat your child's nosebleed and teach your child how to treat it in the future
The Best Ways To Treat Your Child's Nosebleed - Kids Health Tips
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Best ways to treat a nosebleed

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If your child is having a nosebleed, have them sit up. Don't let them lie back. All that will do is let the blood go down into their mouth. They'll start spitting up blood, swallowing blood, it is not fun. Have your child sitting up, pinch the front part of their nose, it's gentle pressure on the area that's bleeding and it usually should stop. Another thing that you can do if it's an older child that's cooperative, have them chew on some ice chips. The ice will help shrink the blood vessels and the bleeding will be controlled. You can have them lick on a popsicle, you can put an ice pack on the outside of their nose; that all helps reduce an active nosebleed. The first thing that you can do to prevent nosebleeds is to see why it's happening. Kids pick their nose. That's the way it is. Kids tend to pick their nose, they pick a scab, and it starts to bleed. Keep their fingernails short, teach them about blowing their nose, and teach them a little bit about what I call nasal hygiene as far as how to keep their noses clean. And that will help prevent nosebleeds.

Pediatric Otolaryngologist, Nina Shapiro, MD, shares advice for parents on how to best treat your child's nosebleed and teach your child how to treat it in the future

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Nina Shapiro, MD

Pediatric Otolaryngologist

Dr. Nina Shapiro is the Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat) and an Associate Professor of Surgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.  As the first fellowship-trained pediatric otolaryngologist at the medical center since it was founded in 1955, her presence has put UCLA 'on the map' in her field.  

A graduate of Harvard Medical School and Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences, she also completed her residency training at Harvard.  She then went on to complete additional subspecialty training in pediatric otolaryngology at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London, and The Children's Hospital of San Diego.

A native of New York, Shapiro has been honored with several prestigious awards, including the American Society of Pediatric Otolaryngology Award for Clinical Research, the UCLA Division of Head and Neck Surgery Faculty Teaching Award, and the American Academy of Pediatrics Young Investigators Award.  She has also been named "Super Doctor" by Los Angeles Magazine, and has been listed in "Who's Who in America".  

She has authored over 70 peer-reviewed journal articles, has edited a pediatric otolaryngology textbook, and is the author of the parenting book Take a Deep Breath: Clear the Air for the Health of Your Child, releaseded in January 2012. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children, and enjoys spending time with them more than anything else in the world.

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Transcription: 
If your child is having a nosebleed, have them sit up. Don't let them lie back. All that will do is let the blood go down into their mouth. They'll start spitting up blood, swallowing blood, it is not fun. Have your child sitting up, pinch the front part of their nose, it's gentle pressure on the area that's bleeding and it usually should stop. Another thing that you can do if it's an older child that's cooperative, have them chew on some ice chips. The ice will help shrink the blood vessels and the bleeding will be controlled. You can have them lick on a popsicle, you can put an ice pack on the outside of their nose; that all helps reduce an active nosebleed. The first thing that you can do to prevent nosebleeds is to see why it's happening. Kids pick their nose. That's the way it is. Kids tend to pick their nose, they pick a scab, and it starts to bleed. Keep their fingernails short, teach them about blowing their nose, and teach them a little bit about what I call nasal hygiene as far as how to keep their noses clean. And that will help prevent nosebleeds.