[Review: pathophysiology and methodology of nasal packing]

Nasal packing is a frequent procedure to control spontaneous nasal bleeding or postoperative oozing following different types of nasal surgery. It strives for internal stabilization of the nasal framework and for optimizing wound healing by prevention of stenosis or synechia. A lot of different materials is used and there is no accepted standard concerning the type and application. A review on pathophysiology of the packed nose is given together with a survey on customary packing materials focussing on the specific merits, demerits and side-effects including economical aspects.