The world loses its colors when a person loses even one of the abilities of the senses.
Hearing problems that can occur with ear congestion are very acute.
In addition to muffling the sounds of the environment, with a stuffy ear, the perception of one’s own voice is distorted, dizziness and noise in the head may appear.
Clutching at ear sticks right away to eliminate ear congestion is not only stupid, but also quite dangerous.
Such a symptom can appear both for natural reasons and signal serious pathologies.
Therefore, before starting self-medication, you need to understand the origin of the stuffiness of the ear.
Why is it laying ears?
Ear congestion may appear briefly or continue for a certain amount of time. Such a symptom may disappear, and periodically begin to disturb again. In addition, more often one ear is laid, but there is also a bilateral pathology. In each case, there is a reason.
Natural Causes of Ear Congestion
The human ear is designed so that when there is a difference in external pressure, a sensation of stuffiness in the ear occurs. This is due to the fact that there is air in the tympanic cavity. When a person is in natural conditions, the differences are insignificant and the pressure in the inner ear calmly adjusts to it.
With a sharp change in external pressure, which occurs during take-off and landing of an airplane, when moving on an elevator or in attractions, the inner ear does not have time to adapt to new conditions and puts ears in place.
Water and foreign objects
When diving, swimming, water can get into the ear, which causes a feeling of stuffiness in the ear. It is not difficult to get rid of this problem. You just need to jump on one leg, bowing your head to the side.
But foreign objects caught in the ear, you should not try to extract it yourself. Small children often stuff small objects as well as plants into the ear. But adults are not immune from this scourge. Various insects can fall into the ear, which are not able to get out of it.
Why the ear is stuffy: a cold and a runny nose
The nose, throat and ears are closely related. Any pathology that occurs in the throat or nose can affect the condition of the ear.
The effect of blood pressure on ear congestion
A congestion in the ears may indicate a jump in blood pressure. Hypertensive patients are well aware of this symptom. Dizziness may be added to stuffy ears. Knowing the predisposition to increase in pressure, with the appearance of stuffiness in the ear, you should immediately measure the pressure in order to urgently take the measures necessary to confirm the testimony.
Sulfur plugs in the ears
The ear glands constantly produce sulfur. It can accumulate in the ear canal and form plugs. Such a process occurs in case of improper ear care, as well as with congenital pathology in the form of a narrow passage. Sulfur cork is able to change its position. Therefore, a feeling of stuffiness in the ear may appear periodically. More often it occurs in the morning after sleep. However, with large traffic jams, the ear will be blocked constantly until the problem is resolved.
Stuffy ear and dizziness
Ear problems may be accompanied by dizziness with:
• stressful situations;
• body poisoning;
• a sharp change in weight;
• during extreme heat.
Other diseases affecting ear congestion
Not always ear problems can be solved independently. Especially when a stuffy ear signals serious pathologies in the form of:
• functional disorders of the temporomandibular joint;
• inflammation of the middle ear;
• inflammation of the Eustachian tube;
• curvature of the nasal septum;
• Meniere's syndrome with a pathological change in tissues in the middle ear;
• neuromas - tumors of the auditory nerve;
• tumors in the brain;
• otosclerosis.
Stuffy ear for colds
The ear is a complex system that allows a person to not only perceive sounds, but also to determine the position in space, maintain balance and coordinate their actions. The eardrum, the first to perceive sound waves, is very sensitive to irritants and can perform its functions only if it maintains a stable pressure in the inner ear. The pressure is regulated thanks to the air passing through the Eustachian tube, which is connected to the pharynx. Any changes in the nasopharynx can affect the ability of the Eustachian tube to let air through and regulate, resulting in a feeling of stuffiness in the ear.
Colds are accompanied by various changes in the throat and nasopharynx, able to affect the condition of the ear:
1. During colds, the lymph nodes located directly in the nasopharynx can become inflamed and also increase in size. With significantly increased lymphoid tissue, the passage of the Eustachian tube is blocked, which affects the condition of the ear.
2. The defeat of the mucosa with colds involves in the process and causes inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose and ear, which provokes pathological changes.
3. Actively produced mucus with colds can block the entrance to the ear from the side of the nasopharynx. In addition, a large accumulation of mucus can cause an inflammatory process.
4. Under the influence of a cold, fluid may accumulate in the inner ear. Pathogenic infections cause otitis media. Together with the stuffy ear in this case, the patient is concerned about headaches, nausea and dizziness.
You can’t try to get rid of problems with the ears that arose during a cold on your own with the help of an additional cleaning of the ear passages, and especially with warming up. In most cases, getting rid of stuffy ears is obtained by curing the throat and eliminating irritants. But if the pathology of the ear is associated with infectious and inflammatory diseases, you will have to deal with its treatment separately.
Stuffy ear
A runny nose is most often associated with colds of various etiologies, the presence of polyps in the nasal cavities, and other functional disorders. Physiologically, a runny nose is accompanied by inflammation of the mucosa, accumulation of mucus in the nasal passages and narrowing of the vessels. It is these changes with a runny nose that can become the reason why the ear lays:
1. The inflammatory process spreads not only in the nasopharynx, but can also affect the ear organs, which causes a reaction in the form of stuffy ears.
2. Vessels, contracting in the nasal passages, also provoke a narrowing of the Eustachian tube, which entails a change in pressure in the ear and problems with the perception of sounds.
3. The fluid accumulated in the nose can drain along the back wall of the nasopharynx and enter the inner ear canals, clogging them. If the mucus contains infectious particles, such a process can provoke infectious diseases of the ear. Especially dangerous snot having a greenish yellow color.
4. Often a problem with the ears is caused by the inability to clear the nasal passages with a runny nose. Excessive blowing creates additional pressure in the inner ear and irritates the sensitive eardrum. Constant exposure to it can cause a stuffy ear. Therefore, it is necessary to close one nostril when blowing, while trying to get rid of the snot from the second. If there is a problem with the discharge of mucus, you can pre-rinse the nasal passages with water and salt.
Untreated runny nose increases the likelihood of otitis media, and even meningitis. Running problems with the ears caused by a runny nose can cause damage to the facial nerve and significantly impair hearing.
Relieve the condition with a runny nose and eliminate ear congestion help:
• vasodilator drugs for the nose;
• ear drops;
• timely cleaning of the nose;
• exercises that help change the pressure in the ears in the form of exhalations through the nose when the nostrils are clamped, after which they swallow air several times.
Stuffy ear after a cold
If a cold is safely cured, but there is a feeling of stuffiness in the ear, this may indicate:
• about the residual effects of enlarged lymph nodes;
• about untreated or chronic runny nose;
• about infectious diseases of the ear that arose as a complication after a cold.
Cold viruses, penetrating the ear cavity, cause a secondary infection of the ear. The disease often occurs suddenly and, in addition to ear congestion, causes severe pain. Unpleasant sensations are associated with the sensitivity of the nerve endings of the eardrum, which has undergone increased pressure. Over time, the phenomena can subside, as the eardrum can stretch a little.
When ear infections appear:
• loss of appetite, as swallowing pain and ear congestion intensify;
• sleep disturbances - fluid in the inner ear moves during sleep;
• temperature increase - can rise up to 400 C;
• dizziness - vestibular functions of the ear are disturbed;
• hearing impairment - sound signals do not reach the middle ear;
• discharge from the ear - confirm the perforation of the eardrum.
Even if the pain and congestion of the ear go away, without adequate treatment, the accumulated pus in the middle ear may remain there and the disease will turn into chronic or purulent otitis media.
Causes of tinnitus with stuffy ear
Tinnitus negatively affects the condition of patients, becomes a cause of irritability, tension. Even emotionally stable people inadequately respond to tinnitus, and people with a mobile psyche are prone to depression under the influence of tinnitus. With tinnitus (the scientific name for tinnitus), insomnia, dizziness, anxiety, problems with concentration of attention appear.
The most commonplace but most common cause of tinnitus is the high level of sound perceived by the ear.
This phenomenon is encountered:
• teens who abuse listening to loud music;
• people using headphones for a long time;
• persons whose labor activity is associated with exposure to loud sounds.
Tinnitus with a blocked ear may occur due to:
• ear pathologies in the form of otitis media, eustachitis, and sulfuric plugs;
• changes in the central and autonomic nervous system;
• cerebrovascular disease;
• injuries;
• side effects of medication.
Some diseases can be accompanied by a stuffy ear with the appearance of noise in them. This symptom is not permanent, but occurs periodically:
• with high blood pressure;
• due to endocrine diseases;
• for blood diseases;
• under the influence of allergens;
• with tumors;
• during diabetes;
• under the influence of infectious diseases;
• with sclerosis of blood vessels, cysts, brain tumors;
• with exacerbation of vegetovascular dystonia;
• due to osteochondrosis;
• with pathologies of the joints of the jaw.
The spectrum of reasons for this, at first glance, a simple phenomenon, such as tinnitus, is quite large. Therefore, you can determine the true source of the problem only after passing the examination.
What to do at home if the ear is blocked?
Serious problems with the ears are better not to try to treat on your own. And simpler cases of stuffy ears can be dealt with at home.
Remove traffic jams
1. 3% hydrogen peroxide will help, which is pipetted into the ear. A few drops are enough. After some time, the sulfur plug itself softens and begins to leak.
2. You can cope with cork with olive oil. A slightly heated liquid is introduced into the ear with a stopper. Sulfur will literally begin to flow out in a couple of minutes.
If there is perforation of the eardrum or suspected infection, self-instillation by any means of the ears is prohibited.
Get rid of the water in your ear
1. You can tilt your head to the side, attach a palm tightly to your ear, putting your fingers together. Abrupt abduction and pressing of a palm from an ear creates a vacuum and forces water to come out.
2. Jumping with a bowed head on one leg also helps.
3. Water disappears after 15 minutes lying on a warm heating pad.
Get rid of stuffy ear when changing pressure
Being on a plane or high in the mountains, you can quickly eliminate the symptom of stuffy ear. In these situations, try:
1. chew regular chewing gum or start yawning;
2. drink a glass of water, only in very shallow sips;
3. suck on the candy or just swallow it several times in a row;
4. inhale deeply through the mouth, while holding the nose with your fingers, and exhale through the nose sharply enough.
Treatment for colds and colds
Of course, it is possible to get rid of the stuffiness of the ear with a cold and a cold only by completely curing the throat and nose. But you can speed up this process by applying:
• vasodilator drops;
• exercises for changing ear pressure (deep yawning, chewing, balloon inflating);
• rinsing the nose;
• warm to warm your ears.
Remember, you can apply any warming procedures for ear diseases only if you are absolutely sure that there are no inflammatory and purulent processes in the ear.
You can warm your ears with a cold with an alcohol compress, camphor alcohol. To do this, gauze is moistened in a liquid, squeezed well and applied around the auricle. On top, the compress is covered and insulated with a woolen scarf. Warming up can also be done with the help of heated salt or sand, which is poured into a linen bag and applied to a sore ear.
Help with colds inhalation. They can be made both with the help of pharmacy devices, and, using the old-fashioned method, breathe hot steam over a container with a healing broth. Inhalations help thin the mucus, relieve swelling, which has a beneficial effect on the condition of both the nose and ears.
Folk tips with a stuffy ear
Follow popular prompts with great caution, and it is better to consult with a doctor about the safety of methods.
1. Ear syringing with warm water helps to remove a foreign object.
2. You can try to remove an insect that has got into your ear by dropping heated oil in it.
3. In the composition of solid propolis and alcohol, infused for a week, a cotton swab is moistened and inserted into a sore ear. The procedure is performed to eliminate ear congestion.
4. A swab soaked in honey is inserted into the ear at night. Helps with ear problems during colds.
5. Eliminate congestion of the ear by using instillations of almond oil.
Stuffed ear - diagnostic and treatment methods
If the ear lays for more than two days, there are pains or fever, urgent help from doctors is needed. Ear problems are solved by an otolaryngologist, who can use one of the types of diagnostics to find out the reasons:
1. Hearing Audiometry - helps determine the sensitivity of the ear to the frequency and volume of the sound. It is carried out using special instruments or voice.
2. Tympanometry - determines the presence of pathologies in the form of a tumor, and sulfur plugs. Perforation of the tympanic membrane or bone pathology can be detected.
3. X-ray - helps to detect inflammatory processes, various tumors, and bone problems.
4. Biopsy - samples of cartilage and other tissues help to rule out polychondritis.
If you suspect other diseases that cause problems with the ears, the otolaryngologist can send a cardiologist, neurologist, endocrinologist for consultation.
The treatment technique is selected depending on the causes of the stuffy ear:
1. A rinse procedure is used to remove plugs.
2. Treatment of inflammation in the middle ear and in the Eustachian tube involves the use of vasodilator drops, as well as physiotherapy.
3. For the treatment of pathologies of an infectious nature, antibiotics and antibacterial therapy are used.
4. In difficult cases, it may be necessary to purge the Eustachian tubes or the introduction of hormonal medications using a catheter.
5. Problems with chronic pathologies of the nose are solved by washing.
6. Serious pathologies may require surgery, and further medication.
7. The problems caused by allergies are resolved by histamine preparations, as well as the clarification of the allergen to further eliminate contact with him.
By applying for help in a timely manner, you can eliminate ear congestion in a short time. Sometimes the simple recommendations of a doctor are enough for treatment. But do not treat the problem of stuffy ears as a simple and frivolous one. Launched pathology can not only manifest itself with serious complications, but also completely deaf.
