An Arizona man thought he had a bigger problem when his chronic runny nose wouldn’t clear up, even after taking over-the-counter allergy medicine for 18 months.  He was right.  His brain was leaking.

Joe Nagy’s runny nose turned out to be brain fluid leaking through a hole in the membrane just above the nasal cavity.

Nagy said that as well as being inconvenient, the problem actually led to a number of embarrassing moments, such as when he leaked brain fluid all over blueprints during a meeting.  

“It was about a teaspoon full.  Splashed all over the top sheet.  I said: ‘these damn allergies’.  I was embarrassed as hell,” Mr. Nagy revealed.

Dr. Peter Nakaji is the neurosurgeon at who fixed Nagy’s brain.  He added, “You don't really think about it, but our brains are really just above our noses all of the time.  This is one of the more common conditions to be missed for a long time.  Because so many people have runny noses.”

Nagy is recovering.