5 Secrets to Know About Ear Pain and Eardrum Infections
Have you ever had an ear infection? If you have suffered ear pain before, then you will understand how terribly painful an ear infection can get. An eardrum infection can be even more painful than an infection of the outer ear canal. This happens because the swollen inflamed eardrum stretches the sensitive nerves of the eardrum. At the ENTcare specialist clinic, we see many children and adults with ear pain and eardrum infections. Some go on to suffer eardrum perforation or rupture. The name of this ear infection is Otitis Media.
Otitis Media
Eardrum infections more commonly occur in children as their Eustachian pressure tubes are relatively immature. Hence children may find it difficult to equalise the pressures behind the ear and nasal ends of the Eustachian pressure tube. If your Eustachian pressure tube doesn't open correctly, a lot of pressure builds up with excruciating ear pain. There is also a risk of fluid forming behind the eardrum, leading to a persistently blocked ear sensation and ear pain.
You should treat eardrum infections early with oral antibiotics, painkillers and perhaps decongestants. Eardrops are usually not very helpful for eardrum infections. If your eardrum perforates, then ear pain will usually subside. However, you may notice a persistent ear discharge. It may be smelly because this is infected fluid leaking out of the eardrum. This is now draining through the "hole" in your ruptured eardrum.
When Should I Worry About My Eardrum Infection?
Don't worry too much yet, as the perforated eardrum can still heal up on its own, provided the underlying infection resolves. Usually, a ruptured eardrum may take on average about 6-8 weeks to fully heal on its own. If you have been waiting 3-4 months for it to heal without improvement, then it is unlikely to do so. This means you might need surgery to repair the ruptured eardrum. The surgical procedure is called a tympanoplasty or myringoplasty, or simply "eardrum repair surgery"!
Five Important Things You Should Know About Your Ear:
So what are the 5 important things to know about ear pain and eardrum infections then?
1. Never Fly If Your Ear Feels Blocked or Is Painful
There is a real risk of eardrum perforation or rupture during the flight. This increases during the landing phase as it will be very difficult to "pop" your ears to equalise the ear pressures.
2. Never Dig Your Ears, Even When They Feel Blocked
Digging your ears will just worsen things. If it's impacted earwax, do not dig your ear with cotton buds. Digging will end up pushing the already impacted ear wax even deeper into your ear canal. Then ear pain will result from pushing even more wax onto your delicate eardrum.
3. Eardrum Infections Commonly Arise From a Recent Bad Cold or the Flu
If you suffer a viral infection of your nose or throat, excess mucus and soft tissue congestion at the back of your nose affects the Eustachian tube function. Bacteria also may spread from the nose via the Eustachian tube to the eardrum internally, causing severe earache and even fever. It may be helpful to try taking an oral decongestant such as Telfast-D or Zyrtec-D, or spraying the nose with a topical decongestant such as Afrin, Iladin or Otrivine sprays, which can be bought at any pharmacy without a doctor's prescription. Persistent ear pain symptoms despite this, mean it's time to visit your friendly doctor or ENT specialist in Singapore to find out why your ear infection isn't getting better!
4. Do Not Wash Your Ear Inside By Rinsing With Water
This either won't help or it makes things much worse, by causing further inflammation of your poor ear. It's better to keep your ear dry at all times and avoid swimming. You can easily prevent water from entering your ear during showertime, by putting part of a cotton wool ball to sit in your outer ear. Applying some vaseline to the cotton wool ball can help it to sit better in your ear.
5. Avoid Wearing Earphones, Ear Plugs and Ear Pieces If Your Ear Hurts
Wearing some device in your ear for too long will cause further inflammation of the ear canal skin. Blasting your inflamed eardrum with noise from earphones will also just cause more ear pain. Your family doctor can prescribe some eardrops for you if they think it might help to soften any impacted earwax. If they examine your ear to find it's an eardrum infection, then you would likely need a course of oral antibiotics such as Augmentin, as eardrum infections tend to be bacterial.
About Dr Annabelle Leong
Dr Annabelle Leong 梁翠娟
Senior Consultant ENT Surgeon
MBBS (Hons) (London), BSc (Hons);
DOHNS, MRCS (England), FRCS ORL-HNS (England)
Dr Annabelle Leong is a senior consultant ENT surgeon with more than 25 years of experience across the United Kingdom, Canada and Singapore. From childhood ENT concerns to hearing, balance and sleep problems in adults, she provides care across a broad range of ear, nose and throat conditions.
Known for being a patient and attentive listener, Dr Annabelle takes a sensible, holistic approach to care, considering the wider picture before recommending treatment. She favours conservative options where appropriate, with surgery considered when clinically indicated and appropriate for the patient’s overall care.