Ears are vulnerable organs that are exposed to various diseases and infections. Edema appears as a result of a specific ailment. In the absence of appropriate therapy, serious complications occur. About swelling of the ear and its treatment is described in the article.
Reasons
What are the causes of ear swelling? This organ is associated with the nasopharynx. Infection of these organs can give a complication to the ears. Puffiness appears from the following reasons:
- Foreign body. The auditory organs are open, therefore they are subject to the penetration of small objects, insects, dust. As a result, the passage closes, inflammation is activated.
- Injuries. They usually appear in athletes. Swelling of the ear appears not only with a strong blow, but also with a pressure drop from strong stress. This often happens to climbers and divers.
- Allergies. After penetration into the body of allergens, breathing becomes more difficult and hearing is temporarily lost. Often this leads to Quincke's edema. For allergic swelling of the ear, an ambulance is needed.
- Infectious and inflammatory processes - tonsillitis, tonsillitis, pharyngitis. With these ailments, hearing decreases, otitis media appears, there aresevere pain.
- Radiation and exposure. Performing various procedures during the examination often leads to damage to the organ of hearing. This happens when performing x-rays, tomography, ultraviolet irradiation.
- Oncology. Tumors arise from injuries, chronic ailments, burns. The ear canal will be closed, swelling will appear.
Ear edema appears in people with weak immunity and lack of vitamins and minerals. At risk are people with chronic diseases of the auditory organ, oncology. Hypothermia causes inflammation and swelling.
How does it manifest?
Symptoms of otitis media in adults include:
- aching pain;
- increase behind the ear lymph nodes;
- hearing impairment;
- ear congestion;
- discharge from ears;
- deterioration of general condition;
- foreign body sensation;
- intoxication - fever, chills, myalgia.
A diseased ear will be larger than a he althy one. It will hurt and react to touch. Of the symptoms of otitis media in adults, a sharp, shooting, twitching pain is distinguished. It passes into the neck, head, manifested by general discomfort, fever, purulent discharge. The affected ear becomes red, will be hypersensitive to light touch.
Symptoms and treatment of acoustic neuritis are interrelated. No matter how uncomfortable you feel, qualified help is needed.
If an ear edema is found in a child, he becomes whiny, nervous. This indicates that the problem is serious. The child needs to be taken to the doctor. Ear edema, like other symptoms of ear pathology, cannot be ignored. Do not self-medicate, see a doctor.
Diagnosis
In case of swelling and congestion of the ear, it is necessary to consult an otolaryngologist. He will do the initial inspection. Consultation required if needed:
- infectionist;
- oncologist;
- surgeon.
Diagnosis is:
- in history taking;
- bacteriological examination of scraping from the affected area;
- UAC and BAC;
- otoscopy;
- microotoscopy;
- CT or MRI of the brain.
Diagnostic procedures are prescribed on the basis of the clinical picture and established anamnesis during the initial examination of the patient. Only after the measures taken, the doctor prescribes treatment.
Treatment
If ear edema is detected, what should I do? The following medications may be used for treatment:
- Adrenaline, antihistamines (Suprastin, Diazolin), hormonal drugs (Prednisolone).
- General antibiotics (Ciprofloxacin), antibacterial ear drops (Otipax).
- Nasal drops with a vasoconstrictive effect ("Otrivin"), drugs to increase mucosal secretion ("Sinupret").
- "Tetracycline" suppressing Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the treatment of perichondritis.
If the cause is allergies, then identification is requiredallergen so that there is no secondary contact. Otohematoma is treated by applying cold to the site of hemorrhage and swelling. If this is ineffective, then an incision is made and the accumulated blood is sucked out with a syringe. Sometimes they put a drain. When excess blood is removed, a tight bandage should be applied to prevent its secondary accumulation. In this case, antibiotics are used.
Foreign body removal
Previously, doctors removed foreign bodies with tweezers and forceps. But now this method is not used, especially if the object is round or oval. It can slip out and go deeper. If the object is located deep, then removal is complicated.
An otoscopy is done first. This will help to establish the site of localization of a foreign object and the place between it and the outer layer of the auditory canal. A specialist must get into this gap to remove a foreign object. This is the easiest removal method.
If the object is in the ear for several days, then washing is performed for 3 days. Before this, you need to drip 5-6 drops of alcohol. On the 3rd day, under a strong pressure of water, the body is removed. If the object is not removed, the walls of the ear become inflamed, then doctors perform an operation. In this case, anesthesia is administered, after which the foreign body is removed with special tools.
To rule out serious complications, a timely visit to the doctor is required. Often neglect of he alth leads to negative consequences. Often in these cases there is a complete hearing loss, which greatly complicates the life of a person.
Other methods
Treatment of ear edema canperformed with the help of physiotherapy, if the acute phase of the disease has subsided. Applicable:
- magnetic therapy;
- quartz;
- UHF therapy;
- electrophoresis.
Also used blowing and catheterization of the auditory tube, which reduce pressure in the ear, eliminate swelling, allow you to use the right drugs. A tumor or abscess requires surgery. Young children are more difficult to diagnose and treat because they are unable to describe personal experiences and the symptoms are often similar to other ailments.
Traditional medicine
In case of swelling of the ears, after consulting a doctor, traditional medicine is used:
- Compresses based on cabbage or plantain. Sheets are applied to the affected area. The compress should be fixed with a bandage and left for several hours. Then the sheet is changed and the procedure is repeated.
- Compress with bay leaf. The leaf must be crushed, pour boiling water (1 cup), after which the product should be infused for 1 hour. Then a cotton swab is moistened and inserted into the affected ear.
- Compress based on propolis. Eliminate inflammation and swelling will allow alcohol tincture of propolis, which must be mixed with vegetable oil in an amount of 1:4. The resulting mixture should be moistened with a gauze pad and placed in the ear for several hours.
- Essential oil compress. 2-3 drops of chamomile essential oil are added to warm water (1/2 cup). With the finished product, you need to moisten a cotton swab and place it in a painful ear. Can be usedrose, sage, tea tree or lavender oil.
- Horseradish juice. If there is swelling and inflammation of the ear, this remedy is instilled 2 times a day, which is necessary to improve blood circulation. It must be borne in mind that this method, for some ailments, can lead to burns and a sharp deterioration in the condition.
Although these remedies are effective, it is advisable to use them after consulting a doctor. Self-medication can lead to adverse effects, which are then not so easy to get rid of.
Prevention
To prevent pathologies in which puffiness of the ears appears, it is desirable:
- Proper hygiene. Do not use ear sticks for cleaning. Also, do not use other items for this. You just need to rinse the ear passages with your finger.
- In cold weather, wear a hat that covers your ears.
- Do not let water or other liquids get into your ears often.
- Do not swim in polluted waters.
- Timely treat ailments that lead to swelling of the ears.
Preventive measures help prevent many ear problems, including swelling. It will be much more difficult to fix it if you start the problem.
Consequences
When a tumor is detected in the ear, it is advisable to consult a specialist. From folk remedies, heating of the inflamed organ with s alt placed in the sock is usually used. Inflammation in the middle ear can result in:
- to rupture of the tympaniceardrums;
- destruction of small auditory ossicles;
- hearing impaired;
- cholesteatome;
- transition of the infectious process into a chronic one;
- meningitis;
- spread of infection to the bone.
With the timely treatment prescribed by the doctor, it will be possible to get rid of ear edema in a short time. If the therapy is carried out independently, then complications are likely. Hearing can sometimes disappear.
Wash
To exclude swelling of the ears, it is necessary to properly care for these organs. Hygiene procedures are important to carry out regularly. But this does not mean that sulfur removal procedures must be performed daily. With the systematic removal of liquid secretion, the glands will work hard. Gradually, an excess of liquid masses appears, which are compacted and turn into traffic jams.
Experts advise not to deep clean your ears too often. You need to wash the auricle daily to prevent the accumulation of opportunistic microorganisms on the surface of the skin. Wash the ears as follows:
- Hands lather with antibacterial soap.
- The little finger is inserted shallowly into the ear canal.
- You should lather your ear.
- You need to tilt your head, rinse the outer ear with warm water.
- Ears should be blotted with a towel.
Do not allow water to enter the ear, as this often causes inflammation. The washing procedure is considered mandatory when caring forinfants, which is associated with malfunctions in the thermoregulation of the body. Severe sweating is the cause of otitis media in infants. Sweat contains proteins and organic components that are a suitable substrate for the development of pathogens.
Cleaning
In order to prevent wax accumulation in the ears, cleaning is performed no more than 1-2 times a week. According to otolaryngologists, the appearance of traffic jams often occurs in people who perform daily cleansing of the auditory canal. If cotton swabs are used frequently, liquid secretions can be pushed into the bony part of the ear canal. Then the gray masses are compacted and traffic jams appear.
To protect against the accumulation of sulfur, you need to use cerumentolytics. These are products with the addition of surface active components. They provide softening of sulfur and its evacuation from the auditory canal. When performing hygiene procedures, simple rules should be considered:
- 2-3 drops are instilled into each ear to soften wax.
- The ear canal is closed with cotton for 30-40 minutes.
- A cotton swab is dipped in hydrogen peroxide.
- Ears are cleared of fluid accumulation.
To clean the ear canal, it is better not to use cotton swabs, as they push the wax deep into the ear. Compliance with the rules of hygiene allows you to prevent many unpleasant phenomena, including swelling.
