The transverse nasal crease or groove is a usually white line between the upper two-thirds and the lower third of the

human nose The human nose is the most protruding part of the face. It bears the nostrils and is the first organ of the respiratory system. It is also the principal organ in the olfactory system. The shape of the nose is determined by the nasal bones ...

(slightly above the cartilage tip between the bridge and nostrils). It can occur as the result of heredity, accident, or the constant rubbing or wiping of the nose, commonly referred to as the

allergic salute :: The allergic salute (sometimes called the nasal salute) is the characteristic and sometimes habitual gesture of wiping and/or rubbing the nose in an upwards or wikt:transverse, transverse manner with the fingers, palm, or back of the hand. It is ...

Occurrence

In addition to cases caused by heredity, physical injury, the transverse nasal crease is common in children and adults with chronic nasal allergies. People with allergies often use their hands to remove mucus from a runny nose or rub an itchy nose. As the hand slides upward, the tip of the nose is pressed up, thus creating the crease.

Appearance

The appearance of the line depends on skin pigmentation. On lighter-skinned people, the transverse nasal crease is lighter in color than the surrounding skin, and may appear white. This is due to

hypopigmentation Hypopigmentation is characterized specifically as an area of skin becoming lighter than the baseline skin color, but not completely devoid of pigment. This is not to be confused with depigmentation, which is characterized as the absence of all pi ...

resulting from the low level of

melanin Melanin (; from el, μέλας, melas, black, dark) is a broad term for a group of natural pigments found in most organisms. Eumelanin is produced through a multistage chemical process known as melanogenesis, where the oxidation of the amino ...

present in the damaged skin. In darker-skinned people, the line may appear darker than the surrounding skin.

References

Nose Rhinology {{anatomy-stub