| It is common for children to have occasional nosebleeds (epistaxis). Some may even have as many as two or three each week and while they may be frightening, they very rarely cause serious problems. Nosebleeds usually occur when your child's nasal passages are dry or irritated from allergies or an upper respiratory tract infection. Rarely, a blood clotting disorder can cause frequent nosebleeds, but your child will usually have other bleeding problems or easy bruising and other family members will have similar problems. Some steps in take during a nosebleed and to help prevent future nosebleeds include:
When he has a bleeding nose, have your child is sitting or standing, have him lean forward and put firm pressure on his nose by squeezing the lower half of his nose. Keep firm pressure for ten full minutes and then release your hold and see if it is still bleeding. If the bleeding hasn't stopped, apply pressure for another ten minutes. Call your physician if doesn't stop. Be sure to keep pressure for the full ten minutes and do not stop early to check to see if it has stopped.
You can prevent nosebleeds by treating allergies when necessary. Treatment also includes moisturizing his nasal passages by placing some vaseline inside each nostril or using a humidifier (but this may make allergies worse). Also avoid aspirin and encourage your child to not pick his nose.
Your doctor may check for an abnormal blood vessel or growth in your child's nose if the bleeding persists or may do blood test to check for a bleeding disorder if one is suspected.
It is important to remember that nosebleeds aren't very serious and it is unlikely that your child will loose enough blood to cause any medical problems.
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