Weird thing happening...

[Elle23]

Every time I have come to my patient's home the last few weeks, my nose starts running...like a faucet!

I have had the same patient since April, and I have never had this problem before!

It was so bad tonight, I was leaning over the crib trying to assess and do vitals, and I had to excuse myself and run to the bathroom because my nose was just dripping.

I have not been sick whatsoever, and I have never had a problem with allergies, so I have no idea what the deal is? It tends to last an hour or two then clear up.

It seems so insignificant, but it is super annoying and embarrasing. I don't want the family thinking I am sick and contaminating their child!

So...any ideas or tips? Do I get some kind of award for craziest PDN thread?! (I almost didn't post this for that reason, but this is really causing me problems!)

[Elle23]

Did they recently turn the heat on? Perhaps their is mold in their ductwork that is being made worse from the heat?

I actually don't think they have turned on the heater yet.

[mluvsgnc]

Maybe they switched fabric softener/dryer sheets, or detergent? Maybe there's a chemical in something like that that's causing the problem?

[justone1]

It might be parasites. I was inflicted with parasites from eating raw food... and then, it spread to my family and friends. They all exhibit runny noses and clear snot soon after coming into my house, or within close contact... and then they cough eventually/have something itchy in their eyes/body... and happens every time...

Too bad the healthcare system doesn't take parasites seriously ...

[nursel56]

Elle I think your plan to explain it to the parents is a good idea...since you can't be really sure what they nay have noticed.

As both a asthma and allergy patient and former allergist's nurse I know that you can develop sensitivities from repeated exposure as I did to the perfumes in baby wipes. So a new reaction to stuff you've been exposed to wouldn't be unusual.

There are lots of sources explaining how to patch test for sensitivity and the laborious process of elimination to pinpoint food and chemical allergies. If it's just an annoyance ar this point explaining to parents and waiting to see how it evolves could do the trick as you've said the symptoms only occur at that particular home.