Our sense of hearing, which is one of the most important tools in perceiving the outside world, may experience problems due to congenital or acquired disorders. This problem, which begins with blows and drying of the mucous membranes in the elderly, also occurs in babies and children. Especially in childhood, when development is most rapid, the presence of a hearing problem negatively affects the child's social life and learning ability.
Hearing loss; Depending on the source of the problem, it can be treated with medication, hearing aids and surgery.
Eardrum Perforation
The eardrum connects the middle ear with the outer ear canal located in the ear canal. It is a thin tissue that separates the Perforation in the eardrum may occur as a result of a blow to the ear, cranial fractures, sudden pressure changes, or insertion of objects such as cotton swabs too far into the external ear canal and fluids that are harmful to the ear entering the ear. Apart from these, rarely, middle ear infections can also cause perforation of the eardrum.
The location and size of the perforation in the eardrum directly affects hearing. Hearing loss will be more worrying if the ossicles in the middle ear are separated from each other as a result of a serious blow or trauma to the ear. Likewise, if a blow or trauma causes inner ear damage, it is unfortunately inevitable to experience serious hearing loss.
Ear Discharge
Ear discharge; It is the discharge (flow) of blood, earwax, inflammation or fluid from the ear.
Mostly, the discharge coming out of the ear is earwax. However, discharge may also be due to minor irritations or infections. A ruptured eardrum may cause white, slightly bloody, or yellow ear discharge.
Dry crusty material on a child's pillow is often a sign of a ruptured eardrum. Bleeding in the ear may be due to injury, cancer or a foreign body in the external auditory canal.
What are the causes of ear discharge?
Inflammation or infection,
Head trauma resulting in a tear or hole in the eardrum, foreign body, very loud noise or sudden pressure changes (such as changes experienced during airplane travel),
Eczema and some skin irritations can cause ear discharge.
In which cases should a doctor be consulted?
If the discharge is;
Yellowish in color and/or bloody,
If it started after a blow to the ear,
br /> If its duration is longer than five days,
If it causes ear and headache, fever,
If it causes hearing loss, a doctor should be consulted.
How is ear discharge diagnosed?
ENT in case of ear discharge. The doctor will take you for a detailed examination. In order to make a diagnosis, it is necessary to know the time when the discharge started, the duration of the discharge, its structure, and whether there are symptoms such as pain and fever accompanying the discharge.
How is ear discharge treated?
The treatment of ear discharge varies depending on the disorder causing the discharge. Your doctor may prescribe ear drops to relieve discharge. However, if the discharge is caused by a ruptured eardrum, you may need to take oral medication.
Middle Ear Calcification
In otosclerosis (calcification), the bone wall of the inner ear is damaged and the sponge at the entrance of the inner ear is damaged. Abnormal bones such as are formed. The stirrup bone may also be affected by the small bone that vibrates to transmit sound waves to the inner ear and cannot move. Hearing loss due to this communication is the failure of the mechanism that transmits vibrations from the middle ear through the interconnected bones. Communication-related hearing loss can be corrected. It is not like hearing loss due to inner ear nerves. 0 cannot be corrected.
Symptoms
– Progressive hearing loss in one or both ears
– Tinnitus.
Otosclerosis in young adults ( Calcification) is the most common cause of middle ear hearing loss. Otosclerosis affects ten percent of the American population to some degree. Otosclerosis runs in families and is more common among women than men. It is more common in whites than blacks, American Indians (Indians) and Asians (yellow-skinned people).
Symptoms appear between the ages of 15 and 35. This condition progresses slowly and affects one or both ears. Hearing loss can be mild or severe. The percentage of hearing loss in women with arthritis may increase during pregnancy. If your hearing is getting weaker, see your doctor.
Diagnosis
If you notice that your hearing is gradually decreasing, see your doctor. Your doctor will examine your ear, perform hearing tests, and ask if any relatives have had early hearing loss.
Otosclerosis does not affect general health and is often a curable disease. However, deafness can be emotionally taxing and cause withdrawal from the environment.
Treatment and Surgery
Otosclerosis is often treated with a surgery called stapedectomy, in which the skin of the ear canal is cut and the eardrum is removed. is removed; Thus, the stirrup bone is removed and replaced with a thin wire or a stainless steel prosthesis. The eardrum is then restored and recovery occurs within 1-2 weeks. Sometimes a laser can be used to make a small hole at the base of the stirrup bone and insert the prosthesis.
Dizziness may occur for a few hours after the surgery, but it will disappear later. Your hearing will quickly recover and you can return to normal activities within a few weeks. Occasionally, a blood clot forms in the middle ear, affecting sound transmission. Usually, this clot disappears in a few weeks.
Stapedectomy surgery is successful in most patients with otosclerosis, but one to two in every 100 people may have complete hearing loss after surgery. This is something that should be considered before surgery. If you have otosclerosis in both ears, it would be more appropriate to have surgery on one ear first and then have the second one operated after seeing the results. If there is damage to the inner ear, stapedectomy surgery may not solve the problem.
Medication
Treatment with sodium fluoride, calcium and vitamin D tablets to prevent progressive bone deterioration and hearing loss caused by hardening of sponge-like bones. is applied. However, debate continues about how useful they are.
Hearing Aids
Another way to correct hearing loss due to otosclerosis is hearing aids. If you have osteosclerosis in one or both ears, your doctor may send you to an audiologist to fit a hearing aid.
Acute Ear Infections
Acute ear infection. (otitis media)four basic It happens this way. Serous otitis media (watery ear infection), purulent otitis media, acute purulent otitis media (acute purulent ear infection) and secretory otitis media (secretory ear infection). In the mildest type (serous) watery ear infection, fluid accumulates in the middle ear. This is due to the eustachian tube being closed or excessive fluid secretion in the middle ear. There may be discomfort and temporary hearing loss, but there is usually no infection.
Symptoms
– Feeling of fullness in the ear
– Severe ear pain
– High fever and chills
– Nausea and diarrhea
– Hearing loss
In the second type (fluid ear infection), there is both a plaster and an infection. This usually develops with and in association with upper respiratory tract infection, adenoid enlargement, or both. This ear infection causes the third type of ear infection and the most dangerous moment, acute purulent ear infection.
In this third type, the middle ear fills with pus and the pressure of the pus can burst the eardrum. As a result, blood and pus flow. Acute purulent ear infection affects children most. The infection can also be viral. It may also be caused by bacteria.
Sometimes, when ear infection lasts for a long time or is repeated, there is a change in the cells around the middle ear. These cells begin to secrete a darker fluid. The result is a secretory ear infection.
Diagnosis
A sharp pain in the ear along with hearing loss and fever may be symptoms of otitis media (middle ear infection). (If there is an ear infection, babies will constantly They cry and pull the sick ear). Consult your doctor without delay. Your doctor may take a culture sample and send it to the laboratory to determine the causative agent of the disease.
Aqueous or secretory (thick fluid) ear infections are disturbing conditions, but they do not cause permanent hearing loss. If more serious types of ear infections are not treated properly, the infection can spread to the mastoid process and, rarely, to the inner ear. If the eardrum, middle ear bones or inner ear structure is damaged, permanent hearing loss may occur.
Treatment
You can reduce the pain caused by acute ear infection to some extent until you see your doctor. Aspirin or ba You can take another painkiller and place a small heated (warm) pillow over your ear.
Medication
In middle ear inflammation (serous otitis media) in which clear fluid accumulates, your doctor will advise you to breathe more easily through your nose. He or she may give you a decongestant (secretion-reducing) nose drop to increase your breathing and increase the amount of air flowing from the Eustachian tube to the middle ear. He can also treat acute and purulent otitis media with medication. If the inflammation does not go away, other medications may be added to the treatment
If runny nose and various nasal allergies contribute to the development of otitis media, your doctor may prescribe nasal drops and antihistamine medications.
Surgery
If there is too much pressure on the eardrum, the membrane is surgically opened (myringotomy) and the pressure is relieved. In children, this procedure is performed under general anesthesia in the hospital. The eardrum closes within 1-2 weeks.
Earwax (Cushion)
At the entrance of the ear canal, in the area where the hairs are located, it is produced by special oil glands in the skin. A natural secretion called "cerumen", which is dark yellow or light brown in color, is created. This secretion has properties that protect the ear canal, lubricate and protect against microbes. Cerumen is often incorrectly referred to as earwax. Frequent cleaning and insufficient secretion of this very special and natural body secretion, which should not be destroyed by cleaning, causes dryness and itching in the ear canal.
When should the ear be cleaned?
Normally, the inner part of the ear canal needs to be cleaned. There is no. Even if the ear canal is never cleaned, cerumen is expelled spontaneously over time. Due to the self-cleaning feature of the ear canal, it is not possible for the serum to block the ear. The ear canal is usually clogged as a result of people pushing the cerumen deep with cotton swabs during ear cleaning.
Plugs called "clugs" may form in the ear canal due to reasons such as pushing the cerumen deep while trying to clean it, dry and flaking of the ear canal skin, and working in a dusty environment. . The ear canal should be cleaned by a physician when the plugs cause the following symptoms:
Ear pain
Fullness in the ear
Read: 0
