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Beat that pain in the ear
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Don't let your annual vacation be spoilt by an earache
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HEAR THIS! Cotton plugs can help ward off pressure changes that can affect the ear canal during flights
"We're going to Ibiza... ohh,We're goin' to have a party... by the Mediterranean Sea"
It is not just the Vengaboyz but also the Indian yuppie who is on a roll this summer and what with the airlines dishing out generous offers, it sure is a jet-setting world out there.
Two features of a vacation, which can affect the ear, are the pressure changes during the flight and the ubiquitous part of a holiday: the water of the swimming pool.
Our middle ear is the eardrum visible on examination through the external ear and the space beyond it. It's only a window to the `outside world' is through a small eustachian tube opening into the back of the mouth. The purpose of this narrow canal is to equalise the pressure in the ear with that of the environment. But in certain conditions, like an upper respiratory tract infection, sinusitis, allergic rhinitis the canal could be blocked leading to certain symptoms. This canal could also get blocked when air pressure variation is significant.
When the plane lands or takes off there is a change in the pressure in the ear. There is a vacuum created in the middle ear as the air is sucked out and the tube gets temporarily blocked. This can cause pain, muffled sounds and a "popping" feeling.
The middle ear continues to try to equalise the pressure on either side leading to extravasation of clear fluid from the lining (membranes) of the middle ear leading to stuffy sensation and pain. Fluid behind the middle ear can also cause temporary hearing difficulty.
Symptoms
Other symptoms are dizziness and vertigo while bleeding from the ear happens rarely. The fluid also makes one vulnerable to infections. If the incidence is more in infants and young children it is because of the narrower eustachian tube. Similar effect is also seen in scuba divers when there is a change in the air pressure.
Prevention and treatment
Though the symptoms are short-term and subside soon it can spoil the holiday mood and the nagging pain and muffled sound may take out all the fun. The following steps could be of help:
Treat any nasal catarrh before embarking on a flight as this helps avoiding blockage of the eustachian tube.
Cotton used, as earplugs would help in slowing down the pressure changes that can affect the ear. Attempting to "pop" the ears would keep the canal patent and prevent blockage.
Children should be given a bottle or infants a pacifier to suck on during the descent as this also helps to keep the tube open. They should also be encouraged to sit upright and not lie down.
Chewing gum, yawning and swallowing would also be helpful.
It is only when the symptoms persist that treatment is attempted. If the nasal catarrh with discharge from the nose and inflammation of the tubes is the cause then Hepar sulf, Pulsatilla, Kali bich help relieve it.
If it is the drip of discharge from the nose into the throat with the irritation into the ears Alumina and Hydrastis help. If the middle ear is filled with fluid Kali mur should be given the go-ahead. The dizziness is cleared by Conium and pain if any, Chamomilla cools down while Mercurius dulcis is indispensable if there is exudate in the ear.
DR.VENUGOPAL GOURI
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