EFFECTS OF THE BREATHE RIGHT NASAL STRIPS ON NASAL VENTILATION

The Breathe Right nasal strips are more and more commonly used, mainly by athletes, who hope to enhance their physical performance in compet ition and training. The effect of the device in such situations is unc ertain and perhaps somewhat controversial. To investigate the effects of the nasal strips on nasal ventilation, 20 caucasian individuals wer e objectively assessed using anterior rhinomanometry and acoustic rhin ometry. The results showed a significant increase in all subjects of t ransnasal airflow and in the average cross-sectional area of the nasal cavity that quantifies objectively the subjective impression of impro ved nasal breathing. In such patients where an improvement in nasal ve ntilation is desired the use of the Breathe Right nasal strips seems t o offer a beneficial treatment.