Clinical Significance
The nasal septum can depart from the centre line of the nose in a condition is known as a deviated septum due to trauma. However, it is normal to have a slight deviation to one side. The septum generally stays in the midline until about the age of 7, at which point it will frequently deviate to the right.
A perforated nasal septum can be caused by an ulcer, trauma due to an inserted object, excessive nose-picking, long-term exposure to welding fumes, or cocaine abuse. There is a procedure that can be of help to those suffering from perforated septum. A silicone button can be inserted in the hole to close the open sore. An operation to the nasal septum is known as a septoplasty.
The nasal septum can be affected by both benign (fibroma, inflammatory hemangioma of the nasal septum - "bleeding polyp" etc.) and malign tumors (squamous cell carcinoma, esthesioneuroblastoma etc.)
Read more about this topic: Nasal Septum
Famous quotes containing the word significance:
“The hypothesis I wish to advance is that ... the language of morality is in ... grave disorder.... What we possess, if this is true, are the fragments of a conceptual scheme, parts of which now lack those contexts from which their significance derived. We possess indeed simulacra of morality, we continue to use many of the key expressions. But we have—very largely if not entirely—lost our comprehension, both theoretical and practical, of morality.”
—Alasdair Chalmers MacIntyre (b. 1929)