[Rhinolith--clinical and mineralogic aspects]

A case report is presented on a patient with a rhinolith. Besides the clinical symptoms and the diagnostic procedures special emphasis is placed on the results obtained from mineralogical analyses. Chemical, thermal and x-ray diffraction analyses showed that the rhinolith consisted chiefly of siderite (FeCO3) and ferrihydrite (5Fe2O3 X 9H2O). Analysis via the scanning-electronmicroscope and thin-section analysis under the polarizing microscope revealed a nucleus of high iron content. In accordance with the literature an exogenic aetiology of the rhinolith is assumed.