Ear pain

Every minute of his life, a person relies on five senses of perception: sight, smell, taste, sensation and hearing. Therefore, when one of the perceptions is dulled due to pain, it is not pleasant. Especially when such an important organ causes pain.

Pain in the ear area is quite common. However, pain is not always a serious cause for concern. Knowing what and when to pay attention to, you can easily determine the causes of pain yourself.

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Causes of pain in the ear area

Pain in the area of the hearing organs can be caused by inflammatory processes or be purely reflexive. Pain in the ear can also be one of the complications of diseases such as tonsillitis or sinusitis. In addition, the ear disease otitis also causes pain. However, there may be other reasons.

The pain in the ear area itself can be acute (usually due to illness) or dull (inflammatory processes, complications after illness, etc.). Pain can also be caused by simple pressure on the eardrum. This happens when a lot of fluid accumulates in the auricle, which contributes to pulsation and greater tension of the eardrum. In such cases, dull pain also occurs.

Ear pain also occurs in some cases during a cold, due to nasal congestion. During such a period, sleep disturbances may also be observed. Although, given that a cold usually goes away on its own, the pain does not last long either.

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Symptoms of pain in the ear area

We all know that our hearing organ consists of three parts: the middle, inner and outer ear. All three parts can be subject to pain. A person can experience several types of pain in the ear area: aching, pressing and shooting. If you feel pain in the outer ear or auricle, which intensifies when pressing on the tragus area, there is a possibility of otitis externa, since such pain is its first sign. If the pain intensifies and becomes shooting and excruciating, you should consult a doctor in order to prevent the development of otitis media. Such a disease will also be accompanied by an elevated temperature.

Both external and middle otitis are the result of a bacterial or viral infection. Children and adolescents are most susceptible to middle otitis, since the Eustachian tube of their auditory organs is somewhat shorter than that of adults, and this allows infection to freely enter the middle section of the auditory organ.

Symptoms of otitis also include: poor appetite (usually manifests itself in childhood, since the pressure in the middle ear causes quite severe pain, which they cannot cope with on their own), irritability, sleep disturbances, fever (a consequence of elevated temperature), dizziness. Otitis media can also be accompanied by unpleasant discharge from the ears. The fluid can be yellow, brown or white and will be a sure sign that the eardrum is ruptured. In addition, the accumulation of fluid in the auditory organ will lead to hearing loss, and if the infection does not go away, complete hearing loss.

Painful sensations can also be caused by inflammation of the outer ear or auricle. In this case, it is worth waiting with swimming or flying, as this can cause increased pain and unpleasant consequences in the form of ear diseases.

Headache in the ear area

Otitis is often accompanied by headaches. The pain is usually localized in the ear area, but can also be in the frontal part. Such pain occurs very quickly, is sharp and can be accompanied by fever and dizziness.

In chronic otitis, the pain is aching and localized in the area of the infected part of the ear. Pain in the occipital region is also noted.

Severe and acute pain throughout the head accompanied by nausea and vomiting is a clear sign of complications of otitis and its progression to meningitis. In this case, immediate medical attention is necessary.

In general, headaches are typical for complex forms of otitis or complications of an existing infection. With proper and timely treatment, such problems should not arise.

Pain in the tragus area of the ear is typical for infections of the outer ear. The pain intensifies even with light pressure on the tragus. In this case, the nature of the pain can be defined as pulling. If there is no purulent discharge and fever, then a warm compress will be enough to treat such an ailment.

If the pain in the ear area is similar to an electric shock and is pulsating, then the cause is most likely trigeminal neuralgia. The pain occurs in attacks of 2 minutes, usually during chewing, brushing teeth or a wide smile. The pain can be dull and sharp, depending on the characteristics of the human body. In this case, redness of the facial muscles can be observed. Such an ailment cannot be cured on your own and you should immediately consult a neurologist.

Diagnosis of pain in the ear area

Only a qualified specialist can conduct a complete and high-quality diagnosis of the hearing organs for diseases. He checks the ear with an otoscope. A healthy eardrum has a pink-gray color and a transparent structure. In other cases, we can talk about the presence of ear diseases. If there are violations or infections, the eardrum becomes red, inflamed and swollen. With the help of a pneumatic otoscope, you can also check for fluid in the hearing organ. This tool allows you to change the pressure in the middle section of the hearing organ and affect the eardrum. If the eardrum moves without much effort, then there is no fluid. In no case should you try to conduct such diagnostics on your own, since this can lead to a violation of the integrity of even a healthy eardrum, and then you will definitely not be able to avoid a visit to the doctor.

You can independently conduct diagnostics to detect external otitis. If, when pressing on the tragus area, the pain in the area of the auditory organs increases, then there is a suspicion of an infectious infection.

If the pain in the ear area increases when pulling the earlobe, this is a clear symptom of an infectious lesion of the outer ear. Such a disease can be either localized (a furuncle, for example) or affect the entire auditory canal. In such a case, a doctor's consultation is necessary.

If you have noticed a clear deterioration in your hearing recently, and you also feel a blockage in your hearing organ that does not go away when you swallow, then most likely the problem is in the wax plug that has formed. You can fix this problem yourself, without resorting to the help of specialists.

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Treatment of pain in the ear area

Treatment of ear pain depends on the degree of infection and diagnosis. If it is a simple earwax plug, it should first be softened a little with ear drops for several days or a week. Then lie down in a warm bath so that your ears are completely covered with water. If the plug has softened enough, it will freely come out of the ear canal into the water. If not, you should see a doctor. A specialist can remove the earwax plug by injecting warm liquid into the ear canal with a syringe. Under the pressure of the water, the plug will come out and your hearing will improve. But you should not carry out such a procedure yourself, because a sharp object (syringe) can permanently damage the hearing organ if handled incorrectly.

Otitis is also easy to treat. When a bacterial infection occurs, doctors usually prescribe antibiotics and painkillers. At a temperature above 38.5 degrees, which can occur with a cold, acetaminophen or ibuprofen are used to reduce pain in the ear. The effect of these drugs is enough to reduce pain for 1-2 hours. However, the pain may intensify during sleep.

Antibiotics are prescribed by doctors only if the infection in the ear has nothing to do with a cold or another virus, since strong antibiotics can react with other drugs and cause a number of side effects, such as diarrhea, rash or nausea. The action of the antibiotic should relieve pain in the ear area very quickly. If the pain does not subside within 48 hours, you should urgently consult a doctor.

Sometimes fluid in the ear canal remains for a very long time and standard treatments do not help. In this case, doctors can perform a myringotomy. This procedure involves making a small incision in the eardrum to drain fluid from the middle ear. The procedure is quite simple to perform and is performed under general anesthesia on an outpatient basis.

However, if your ears are “shooting”, folk medicine will help you. You should start with a warm and heating compress on the sore ear. You need to put it 2-3 times a day for 2-4 hours. If in addition to ear pain there is also a fever, it is not recommended to put a compress. The correct warming compress consists of a liquid mixture of heated alcohol mixed in half with water, vodka or camphor oil. The resulting solution should be used to moisten a flannel cloth measuring 8 by 8 centimeters, with a slit in the center for the outer part of the ear. We put such a wet napkin on the ear, pushing the auricle through the slit, put thin cellophane on top (we also make a hole in it for the outer part of the auditory organ) 2-3 cm larger than the flannel cloth soaked in the solution, and cotton wool, the size of a palm. Such a compress should be bandaged on top or wrapped in a scarf. Such a simple procedure will completely reduce the pain, but you should not postpone a visit to the doctor.

Folk remedies can also help with ear pain – salvation can be found in simple houseplants. Geranium can help in the fight against pain. Tear off a small leaf of the plant, rub it until juice and smell appear, and insert it into the ear canal so that it can be easily removed. Put a warming compress on top. The geranium leaf in the ear should be changed every 3-4 hours. Royal begonia and crested chlorophytum can be used for a similar purpose.

Instead of ear drops that relieve pain and help fight infection, you can use aloe juice, or prepare a special mixture. To do this, take the oil of one walnut (you can easily squeeze out the oil with a garlic press) and one drop of tea tree oil (however, you can do without it). The resulting mixture should be dripped into the ears 2-3 drops at a time.

Prevention of ear pain

As we have already found out, pain in the ear area occurs due to infection in the ear canal. Accordingly, prevention will mean fighting and preventing such bacterial infection.

Prevention is quite simple: first, you should carefully monitor the hygiene of your hearing organs. To do this, rinse your ear canals with warm salt or herbal solution at least once a month. If you are prone to otitis, try to prevent liquid from getting into your ear while swimming.

In addition, otitis can also occur as a complication after a cold. In this case, the first rule will be a complete recovery and careful adherence to the regimen prescribed by doctors.

The situation is more complicated with the prevention of otitis in children. For the youngest, preventive measures will include vaccinations against colds and flu, avoiding contact with tobacco smoke (if one of the family members smokes), and preventing allergic reactions. It is the latter that can cause ear infections in children. In addition to all of the above, you should also monitor the condition of the adenoids. If necessary, a doctor can easily remove them and thus protect them from complications associated with their enlargement and otitis.

Remember our recommendations and be healthy!