Bloody nose and high blood pressure: what to know

Hypertension often has no obvious symptoms, so a nosebleed alone cannot confirm it. Dry air, nose picking, forceful blowing, allergies, injury and medicines that affect clotting are common reasons for nasal bleeding. Very high blood pressure can place extra strain on blood vessels and may make bleeding harder to control, but the relationship is not simple. Chronic Kidney Disease, Obesity and Obstructive Sleep Apnoea can be associated with hypertension, while Heart Failure, Angina, Stroke and Transient Ischaemic Attack are serious conditions that may involve blood-pressure problems but are not explained by a nosebleed alone.

If you have a home monitor, sit quietly with your back supported and arm resting, then follow the device instructions. Record the reading, time, symptoms and medicines rather than reacting to one result in isolation.

Sit upright, lean forward and pinch the soft part of the nose continuously for ten minutes. Do not tilt your head back or blow your nose after the bleeding stops. If you already take blood-pressure medicine, continue it as prescribed unless a clinician tells you otherwise; do not take an extra dose to treat a reading without advice. Avoid strenuous activity until you feel settled, and arrange a review for recurrent bleeding or repeatedly raised readings.

Call emergency services for bleeding that is heavy or will not stop with firm pressure, faintness, chest pain, severe breathlessness, confusion, new weakness, facial drooping, trouble speaking, sudden vision change or a severe unfamiliar headache. Seek urgent advice for a very high home reading accompanied by symptoms, or if you are pregnant and have concerning headache, vision changes or swelling. Arrange routine assessment to confirm hypertension with properly taken readings.

Ask how to use your monitor correctly, whether any medicine or nasal treatment increases bleeding, how often to record readings, and which symptoms should prompt emergency care.