Using a nasal douche: How to irrigate your nose

A cold caused by a viral infection, sinusitis, pollen or dust allergy, a dry or blocked nose with crusts, polluted air or nasal care following surgery? A nasal douche can help in all of these cases. We will show you how to use a nasal douche properly, with tips on nasal care.

How to use the PARI Montesol nasal douche.

Wash your hands to remove germs such as bacteria and viruses.

• Once the nasal douche is disassembled, fit the blue nasal joining piece to the bend and place the valve on the tank.
• Pour nasal rinse into the nasal douche. NB: The bottle opening should not touch the nasal douche.
• Fill the tank of the nasal douche with lukewarm water up to the lower edge of the screw thread.
• Screw the bend with the attached nasal joining piece onto the tank and swirl the liquid a little. Turn the nasal joining piece to the “stop position”.
• • Turn the nasal douche upside down so that the bend and the nasal insert are at the bottom.

Note: If you have just had nasal surgery or you are very susceptible to infections, it is recommended that you use boiled and cooled drinking water.

Hold the nasal douche in your left hand to irrigate your left nostril. To irrigate your right nostril, hold it in your right hand.

• Bend your head slightly over the basin and open your mouth wide.
• Continue breathing deeply and calmly through your nose.
• Turn the nasal joining piece to the “open” position. Here the arrows on the nasal joining piece must match up with the line on the bend.
• Position the nasal douche against your nostril so as to block it completely.
• Tilt your head slightly in the direction of the free nostril.
• Lightly press your finger on the valve at the top of the nasal douche. The liquid begins to run and irrigates your nose. Liquid, nasal secretions and other debris flow out of your free nostril.
• Gently blow your nose after the nasal douche to remove any remaining water and broken down secretions from your nose.
• Switch to the other nostril once you have used about half of the rinsing solution.

Directly after each nasal rinse you have to clean the nasal douche to avoid infestation with germs.

Empty any remaining liquid out of the nasal douche. Dismantle the nasal douche into its individual parts. Place all parts in warm drinking water with washing-up liquid (1 teaspoon of washing-up liquid to 3 litres of water), swirl the parts and rinse for about 5 minutes with clear water. You can also clean the dismantled nasal douche in the dishwasher. Disinfect the nasal douche once a day in the vaporiser or by boiling. Vigorously shake off any water and allow the parts to completely dry.

We have addressed the FAQs on using a nasal douche and the PARI Montesol nasal rinse.

The PARI Montesol nasal douche can be used by children from the age of 7. Children aged 4 years and older should only use a nasal shower after consulting a healthcare professional.

A nasal douche is recommended in the following situations:

• Colds: to prevent colds and to treat symptoms
• Acute and chronic sinusitis (rhinosinusitis)
• Allergic rhinitis (pollen allergy/hay fever, dust mite allergy)
• Dry or blocked nose or crusts in the nose
• Dry (e.g. from the central heating in winter) or polluted air, or a dusty environment
• After surgery (on the nasal cavities, sinuses or nasal septum); please only use after consultation with a healthcare professional

• Rhinosinusitis (infection of the sinuses) and a stuffy nose: 2 to 3 times a day
• Pollen allergy: in the critical allergy season, once a day in the evenings before going to bed
• Dust mite allergy: once a day in the mornings
• For dry nose with dried mucus or if exposed to air pollution: once a day
• After surgery: as directed by the healthcare professional

If you have a blocked nose, start the nasal rinsing in the blocked nostril. Otherwise it does not matter which nostril you irrigate first.

If you get liquid in your throat, you have to bend your head further down. The liquid can then flow out of your throat and into your mouth. If you get a lot of liquid in your throat, open your mouth as wide as you can.

Water in the throat, nosebleeds or a burning sensation when you rinse your nose? These side effects usually only occur if you use the nasal douche incorrectly. Here we show you which application errors can lead to side effects when using a nasal douche and how you can easily avoid them.

Do not use a nasal douche in the following situations:

• frequent or severe nosebleeds
• injury to the nasal roof, the walls of the paranasal sinuses or the base of the skull if there is a direct connection to the fluid spaces of the brain; these injuries can occur, for example, after an accident or an operation or if you have a tumour
• allergies to one of the ingredients in the nasal rinse

The PARI Montesol nasal douche should be replaced with a new product after about 300 disinfections, or 300 to 900 uses, or after max. one and a half years. Also note that you should not share the nasal douche with anyone else. Each person should have their own.

More products and tips to properly look after your nose

If you often have problems with your nose, it is important that you see your doctor to look into why.

• Quickly get rid of a cold: How to help a blocked nose
• PARI SINUS2: Pulsing aerosol for the treatment of sinusitis
• Inhalation for sinusitis: A tried and tested way to bring relief

Note: The information in this blog post is not a treatment recommendation. The needs of patients vary greatly from person to person. The treatment approaches presented should be viewed only as examples. PARI recommends that patients always consult with their physician or physiotherapist first.