Getting to Know the Pregnancy Nose That Trending on TikTok
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Jakarta – Recently, many women have taken to social media – especially TikTok – to share photos and videos of their noses before and during pregnancy. The trend, being termed “pregnancy nose”, has highlighted how some women’s noses swell and change shape during pregnancy.
It’s not known how common this is as everyone’s hormone levels are different and everyone responds differently to changes in them. The change may also be more noticeable for some women.
This change is nothing to worry about and is only temporary, typically resolving six weeks after birth.
According to the Obgyn specialist from Orlando, Florida United States, Dr. Christine Greves explained that the cause of changes in the shape of the nose to become larger during pregnancy is an increase in the hormone estrogen.
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The hormone causes dilation of blood vessels which can cause more blood flow to certain areas, one of which is to the nasal tissue. In the end, it causes changes in the shape of the nose, such as looking bigger and swollen.
"So there are several areas in our body that have mucous membranes that do experience increased blood flow and one of them is the nasal area," she said.
It is not known how common this is as everyone's hormone levels respond differently to the changes.
However, changes in the shape of the nose during pregnancy cause some people to experience nasal enlargement, but this is not dangerous. Not only an enlarged nose, hormonal changes during pregnancy can also present with other symptoms.
Meanwhile, Dr. Eran Bornstein, vice chair of ob-gyn at Lenox Hill Hospital, says the most common physiological change is hyperemia of the nasal and sinus mucous membranes caused by dilation of blood vessels associated with hormonal changes during pregnancy.
"This can cause edema or swelling, nasal congestion, nosebleeds, and in some cases cause significant discomfort. In some patients, the shape of their nose may look larger and differently shaped," Dr. Bornstein explained.
