Need help - dark orange mucus coming out of my nose!

My wife is a nurse in an ear nose and throat Dr's office and I have been experiencing these same symptoms. her Dr told her whats happening is when I had a cold with heavy sinus congestion and all the nose blowing and mucus in my nose caused it to become inflamed/swell and block the sinus from draining (similar to rhinitis). When the cold/sinus congestion begins to subside the inflamation/swelling goes away and allows your sinus to drain. The color is basically bacteria that was building and breeding inside your sinus. Having it come out is actually a good sign and a good thing. It might be accompanied a slightly persistent cough or throat clearing and possibly bad breath. Coming from one nostril is normal. Believe it or not, if you sleep on one side normally, chances are the infection is in that side of your sinuses. if there is bleeding or blood it will almost be streaky or be chunks of blood in the discharge, it wouldn't mix together and change the color of the mucus. OH and if the symptoms go on for more than a couple weeks, see a Dr so they can prescribe medicine to kill the infection, I was given Nasonex. Hope this helps everyone

What the User above me said is correct. When you have strange colored goop coming from your nose just go to your doctor or an urgent care. 99% chance it's a sinus infection. You can fight it off without meds if you would like, but it will take that much longer to fight off, and there is more of a chance it will come back, and get worse each time. You really should seek medical attention, because that infection can spread up to your brain, and drop you in a coma. Even if you don't like taking anti-biotics, just suck it up and take them. The doc may also prescribe nasonex or flonase to help clear things up. An at home remedy to help clear things up is a sinus rinse. I like using NeilMed (www.neilmed.com), most drug stores carry it, if you don't see it in the aisle ask the pharmacist. It's easy, just make sure you follow the directions. After taking the anti-biotics for 4 days, and using that rinse my sinuses cleared up quick, and I was up and running again. Just make sure to finish up the meds though. ;-)

I have the same orangy brown mucous and my glands are very swollen. It's watery as well and drips to my throat which is probably the cause of my swollen glands. i never heard of such a thing... helpp!

Glad to see I am not alone in the lots of yellow/orange stuff coming out of my nose thing! Never had this before in all my 28 years and it scared the **** out of me! Sinusitis ties in with the cold I just got over so I can now sleep knowing my brain isn't going to come out thru my nostril in the night after all :-D

Cheers all and happy sniffing!

I get it all the time, but it's usually due to drug abuse (cocaine).

I've been looking around on the Internet for some help on this, as it has worried me quite a bit. I live in the UK and I am 4 days post-op from a bimaxilliary osteotomy (basically I've had both jaws broken, moved and plated into position as part of the correction of a jaw deformity which left me with a severe open bite).

I had the op on Wednesday morning and since then I've been having sinus problems. Whilst I was laid in my hospital bed, every time I leaned over a mixture of yellow/brown liquid and blood came shooting out of my nose and all over my bed! It didn't happen when I was laid on my back, although I had a stuff, congested feeling in my nose and throat.

I'm now back at home after being discharged on Thursday afternoon, and the problem has persisted since then. I've had large 'chunks' of blood coming down my nose (haematomas I'm told), and a lot of yellow/brown liquid. Occasionally this liquid has small bits of bright red blood in it. However over the last couple of days the fluid has now become completely transparent, and it's colour has deepened to the orange colour described here. I'm not allowed to blow my nose for 2 weeks after my operation so I generally have to leave the fluid in my nasal passage, where it turns hard and almost resembles solid ear-wax.

My surgeon told me that the problem is due to the disturbance of my sinuses when they moved my top jaw. In order to do this they had to effectively separate my top jaw from the skull, and then put it back into it's new position using titanium plates and screws. I suppose with this amount of 'disturbance' the orange liquid problem is understandable. However it's still got me worried! I am a little dizzy but I've been told that this is more than likely a result of the painkillers I'm on, coupled with the powerful anti-biotics. If it is still happening a couple of weeks from now, I'm going to get it reported to the maxillofacial surgeon (who told me not to worry about it as it was normal after my type of operation).

I have had a sinus congestions and drainage for the last couple of days and I really hate to have to take antibiotics if I really don't have to so when my mother in law told be about 'Ocean Water', basically saline nasal spray and how I could tilt my head way back and spray it in to flush out my sinus', I did it and that is when I got the orange goo! But after I blow it out for about 15- 20 minutes, it ran clear and I feel great! It's nice to give your body the chance to fight this stuff naturally.

Me and my daughter age 5 have been unwell for about 2 weeks now and I noticed today that she has this orange snot dripping out. The annoying thing is that she wont do anything to help herself - no medicines, blowing nose, wont drink enough fluids, antibiotics are going to be a no-no as they are discusting taste. Ive spent about £20 on different cough medicines over last couple weeks to find one that she will take. I hope this doesnt last too long as shes been off school for 10 days now.

well, guess I'll add my orange goo story. To echo what many others have said, got a cold, turned into a ripper of a sinus infection (complete with my face swelling up) and then out comes this orange, sometimes bloody goo from my nose. Dr has me on antibiotics and some nose spray, feeling lots better, but the nightly draining of the schnoz in the shower is really, really gross. Stuff smells terrible (yea my sense of smell has returned) and looks just vile. But, I'm not dead yet!

Well, I've currently got this too.. the first google search brought up a bunch of scary stuff about it possibly being leaking brain fluid (eek!), but this thread is more reassuring.

I have the exact same symptoms, which started this morning.. one nostril only, watery orange brown, gushes out like a tap for a few seconds every now and then, especially when I lean my head forward. Thought I was having a nosebleed until I pulled my hand away and noticed it wasn't blood.


A lot of people on here are asking whether it clears up or not, so I'll come back in a week's time, to let anyone who catches it know whether it's likely to be serious or not.

I have the same thing. #7 and never had this kind of color come out of my body. The last two nights it was after showing when it really seemed to loosen up and drain so maybe use alot of steam to help if you're all congested. I've had the cold and cough for a little over a month now so hoping this is it finally breaking up. Good luck everyone!

same problem, thin orange nasal discharge out of right nostril- got it after coming home to florida from Washington , D.c., suspect it is temperature change to blame/ sinusitis...

I FINALLY figured out what the Orange stuff is in everyone's mucus. It's blood. I have had a green very smelly mucus for at least three weeks. For a few days I really dried my nose alot and it got to where when I put tissue in the nose it would pick up spots of blood from being dried out. Then my nose bled, and after that my mucus was orange. So when the mucus is coming down the nasal passage its picking up blood and it turns orange. This can also happen when there is bleeding around the sinuses. This is no cause for alarm. It's nothing. It's just when your nasal passage is dry and bleeds.

The real problem is I'm sick and tired of my mucus being smelly, like death, and tyhe antibiotics they gave me didnt work.

had the flu 3 weeks ago. turned into a nasty cold. now have orange drainage from nose. good to see it's nothing serious.

I had the flu like four/five weeks ago...mucus went from brown to weird kinda orangey brown to blood. My nose has bled now for two days straight. I didn't go to the doctor for the flu and haven't gone for what i suspect is sinusitis. So that rules out side effects of antibiotics for me. I just wonder how long this is going to go on, i haven't smelled or tasted anything for over a month!