Health
Nasal Strips for a Deviated Septum: Will They Actually Help?
A clear-eyed guide to whether nasal strips help a deviated septum, when surgery is warranted, and how to get the most relief without going under the knife.
The short answer
Nasal strips can offer meaningful relief for mild-to-moderate deviated septums by widening the external nasal valve — often the actual symptomatic bottleneck. They will not fix the underlying cartilage deviation, and they can't replace septoplasty for severe cases. For many people, however, they delay or completely avoid the need for surgery.
Where the actual blockage usually sits
Roughly 80% of adults have some septal deviation. Only a fraction are symptomatic, and in those who are, the bottleneck is often not the deviation itself but the external nasal valve — the soft cartilage just inside the nostril that the deviation pulls inward or narrows.
If most of your symptoms come from the valve, a strip can produce a striking improvement. If your deviation sits deeper in the nose (posterior cartilage or bone), the strip will help less because it can't reach that far back.
A simple at-home self-test
Stand in front of a mirror, close one nostril with a finger, and breathe in gently through the open one. Now use your other index finger to lift the cheek next to the open nostril outward — opening the external valve. If the breath suddenly feels much easier, your valve is the bottleneck and a strip is highly likely to help. If nothing changes, the obstruction is deeper.
What strips can and can't do
- Can: widen the external nasal valve by 17–30%, giving real relief for valve-dominant cases.
- Can: improve sleep, exercise tolerance and snoring caused by valve narrowing.
- Can't: physically straighten cartilage.
- Can't: relieve obstruction caused by polyps, turbinate hypertrophy or posterior septal deviation.
When to consider septoplasty
If your at-home test shows no improvement, you've tried strips for a few weeks and felt nothing, and your symptoms are significant — daily mouth breathing, persistent congestion, sleep disturbance — it's worth a referral to an ENT. Septoplasty is a same-day procedure under general anaesthesia with most people back at desk work in a week.
Many ENTs will trial conservative options first, including nasal strips, internal dilators and steroid sprays, before recommending surgery.
Ready to put this into practice?
RhinoGear nasal strips and gentle mouth tape are made in Australia, drug-free, and shipped from Robina, QLD with free delivery over $50.
Frequently asked questions
About this article
Written by the RhinoGear Editorial Team — sleep, breathing and recovery writers based in Robina, QLD. Every article is fact-checked against Australian therapeutic-goods guidance and current peer-reviewed literature on nasal breathing and sleep. RhinoGear products referenced are TGA-listed (ARTG 508285), drug-free and latex-free.
Published 13 May 2026 · Last updated 13 May 2026. This article is for general information only and is not medical advice. If you suspect sleep apnea or another medical condition, see your GP.
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