Painful sensations inside the ear quite often accompany catarrhal diseases and head injuries, for example, with concussion of the brain. Sometimes the pains are so strong that they deprive the person not only of sleep, but also of everyday calmness. Without proper treatment, the pain is unlikely to stop, which in turn can threaten the appearance of complications.
Pain inside the ear
The auditory canal is a whole multicomponent system. If a violation of at least one of the components, there are symptoms that indicate the appearance of damage, inflammation, bruise.
Possible causes of
The appearance of pain in the ears can cause all kinds of injuries and diseases. Also, pain can appear as a symptom after a complication of a viral illness. It is not excluded that painful feelings arose on the background of an air flight or a train ride through a tunnel.
Actually, there are a lot of reasons that cause the appearance of pain in the ear. To establish the exact factor provoking such a malaise, only a professional doctor can.
The following causes can cause earache:
- Otitis is the most common cause of pain within the ear canal. Most often caused by the flu, an infectious disease. Danger of the disease the possibility of transition to other, more serious forms. They are characterized by pyrexia, high fever, progression of inflammation inside the passageway.
- Injuries, foreign bodies - Some mechanical injuries, which have damaged the membrane of the tympanic membrane or the communication of the auditory ossicles, can lead to severe pain. Especially characteristic are the tissue ruptures, external otitis. Also inside the ear canal is a foreign object that damages, scratches and hinders, which creates unpleasant sensations.
- Inflammation of tonsils - inflammatory process has a negative property, consisting in rapid and progressive spread. So, bacteria can quickly move to the mucous membranes of the nose, and then onto the mucous membranes of the ear canal.
- Angina - with this disease, pain in the ears is not uncommon. However, more often than not, bol appears in the complex forms of this disease.
- The sulfur plug is not always characterized by pain. Cork can only remind itself occasionally not with a strong pulling pain, with occasional stitching sensations. More often the sulfur plug shows itself as a decrease in hearing.
Human ear structure
Non-ENT diseases
- Inflammation in the jaw - a purulent process in the jaw bone is the main cause of earaches. This is due to the fact that the infection penetrated the bone and began to develop there.
- The abscess is the consequence of an advanced infectious disease, when the process of destruction has already begun. The abscess of the throat almost always contributes to the appearance of pain in the ears. Also among the causes may be suppuration of the lymph nodes.
- Lymphadenitis is an inflammatory process of the lymph nodes located in the immediate vicinity of the ears. Most often, lymph nodes are inflamed, parotid.
- Nasal congestion and inflammation of the nerve - a nerve that has been relatively inflamed recently, can again make itself felt in such an unpleasant way. Jamming of the facial nerve is particularly evident that it also provokes pain in the ear, pain in the jaw and throughout the face area.
- Sinusitis is an inflammation of the nasal mucosa that, when triggered, is manifested by obvious congestion and pain in the head, in the ear.
- Diseases of the teeth - caries, pulpitis, periodontitis, teething and much more can be closely related to the fact that you are concerned not only with dental, but also with ear pain.
Types of Pain Syndrome
Pain syndrome and its type may indicate a particular disease. However, it is not enough to make an accurate diagnosis. And yet, after listening to the nature of the pain inside the ear, you can draw a preliminary conclusion about what is its cause.
Pain and itching
These symptoms may indicate the presence of an infection in the ear, specifically fungi or various types of bacteria. Pain and itching can also indicate an inflammatory process inside the ear. Another cause of severe itching and subsequent pain in the ear canal is diabetes.
Pain on pressing
This symptom is quite serious. It can indicate external otitis media. When this disease occurs, infectious inflammation of the external auditory canal occurs. Causes the disease Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The cause may also be diseases such as sinusitis, tonsillitis and neuralgia.
Ear and jaw aches
This sign is very common in lymphadenitis. The cause is inflammation of the parotid or submandibular lymph node. Pain can be given to the temple and even clavicles. The cause may also be a toothache caused by caries or the growth of a wisdom tooth. Also, pain giving away in the ear and jaw can simultaneously appear due to inflammation of the ternary nerve.
Ear and tumors ache
If, in addition to ear pain, swelling is also observed, it can speak of an inflammation of the middle ear. It occurs most often after a cold on the legs. The cone that appears near the ear, the size of which varies from 3 to 15 mm, can speak of inflammation of the lymph node.
Ear aches and discharge
Discharge from the ear, combined with pain, may indicate the presence of purulent otitis. This disease is very dangerous, occurs as a consequence of an incomplete cold or otitis of a lighter form.
Why does the ear ache in otitis
Pain and ulcers or boils
The furuncles in the ear cause very severe pain, can pick up and deprive the sick sleep and appetite. In this case, try to squeeze them yourself, by no means impossible. This problem arises due to inflammation in the tissue structure. In medicine, this process is called limited otitis.
Hurts ear and burns( bakes)
Most often, pain accompanied by burning, speaks of infection in the ear cavity. If the burning sensation supplements pain in the occipital region, it most likely speaks of an osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis is made by an ENT doctor. But this does not mean that the patient will only need to consult this doctor. If the disease is too complicated and rapidly progresses, the patient can be referred to such doctors as:
• Surgeon.
• Infectionist.
• Surdologist.
• Audiologist.
• Neurologist.
• Traumatologist.
It's not worth it. The ENT for the diagnosis collects the history data, and also mandates the examination of the tympanic membrane. This procedure is called otoscopy.
If the doctor sees a strong need, he can make a puncture of the tympanic membrane to take a sample of the contents of the middle ear for bacteriological culture. In some, especially neglected cases, computer tomography may be prescribed.
Treatment
Therapy is performed only after the diagnosis by the doctor. Appointed drug treatment. Also the doctor can supplement it with some folk remedies that can serve as a preventive and additional way of maintaining the body.
Medication
All kinds of medications can be prescribed, depending on the symptomatology that is distressing the patient. Among them:
Anesthetics. It is necessary to eliminate the compulsive pain syndrome.Surgical methods are used only in those cases when drug treatment does not give a proper result.
Folk remedies
Folk remedies for the occurrence of pain in the ears at best will not work, at worst, will lead to aggravation of the course of the disease. It is worth using carefully and already familiar methods of treating the illness, warming up and instillation with a solution of hydrogen peroxide.
What can and can not be
This question is rather ambiguous. With pain in the ears, you can do everything that the competent doctor will prescribe. And "it is impossible" there are several at once:
- You can not warm your ear in case of pain. It is possible only in case the doctor has sounded the diagnosis and has recommended to carry out the given procedure.
- Do not supplement the prescription of the doctor with other, auxiliary components of your own choice.
- It is impossible to depart from treatment before passing the full course of therapy.
More information on the treatment of ear pain in our video:
Prevention
Prevention of ear pain includes a simple guide, keeping which, you will not return to the original problem for a long time:
- timely prevention of catarrhal diseases;
- hardening;
- proper nutrition;
- warm clothing in the cold season;
- prevention of dental diseases;
- timely visit to the doctor at the appearance of the first symptoms of an earache.
If you have an earache, do not try to cope with it on your own, if it does not pass within 24 hours. Operative care and properly prescribed treatment will eliminate the unpleasant symptom at the beginning.