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Diseases of the Ear - Ear Diseases
Problems of the Ear - Diseases and Disorders of the Ear
Problems of the
Outer Ear
Otitis Externa
Swimmers Ear
Perforated ear drum (Burst ear drum)
Problems of
the Middle Ear
Otitis Media
Glue Ear
and Burst Eardrum
in Children
Burst Eardrum in adults
Mastoid Infection
Cholesteatoma
Damaged Ossicles
(Ossicular chain disruption)
Otosclerosis
Problems of the
Inner Ear
Sensorineural
Hard of Hearing and nerve damage
Tinnitus
Vertigo
Menieres Disease (Ménière's Disease)
Vestibulopothy
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo or BPPV
Labrynthitis
Vestibular Neuronitis
Cochlear Implants
Common
Diseases and Disorders of the Outer Ear
Importance of Ear
Wax (Cerumen)
- Traps
debris and microorganisms so they can migrate
their way out of the ear canal
- Contains
immunoglobulins important for immunity
- Provides
moisture for the tympanic membrane, which helps keep
it pliable.
Blockages in the external ear canal
Blockages in the external ear canal may affect hearing. They are usually caused by wax,
although there may be rarer causes (see below
under Otitis Externa).
The ear makes wax in order to clean itself and
keep the outer ear free from moisture. The wax normally falls out of the ear on its own.
For copious wax flows, a doctor visit may be
needed periodically to have it removed.
Basic rules for
removing ear wax: Never push cotton buds,
fingers or anything else into the ears. Why? You
will push any wax there is onto the eardrum.
This could cause pain, infection and loss of
hearing. At worst you could burst the eardrum. It is best to ask
the doctor to check
the ears and clean them if you think you have a continual wax
build-up.
Otitis
Externa (Outer Ear Infection)
Otitis externa occurs when the skin of
the ear canal becomes inflamed. This may happen
due to any of the following conditions:
- The lining
or the outer ear canal has been irritated by
scratching or continual Q-tip (cotton bud) use
-
A skin condition such as eczema
- A fungal infection
is present
- A bacterial
infection is present
-
A viral infection
is present
Otitis Externa is
also associated with high humidity, warmer
temperatures, swimming, local trauma, and
hearing aid use or hearing protector use.
More
detailed information on Otitis Externa
Perforated eardrums
(burst eardrum)
Perforated eardrums from internal
causes (pressure pushing out on the ear drum) are caused by
middle ear infections (viral or bacterial -
otitis media) In most cases, a burst
eardrum from a middle ear infection will heal on
its own within about two months. However, if an item
such as cotton bud, pencil, or sharp object caused the
burst eardrum, a trip to your family doctor is
mandatory. Your doctor will probably clean the
ear carefully give you an antibiotic shot and
antibiotic ear drops, then prescribe antibiotic
tablets for a 10 day regimen. In severe cases,
you may be referred to an ENT specialist (Ear,
nose, Throat specialist).
More detailed information on a Burst eardrum
Common Diseases and Disorders of the middle ear
Common terms for the bones of the middle ear (Ossicles) are: Stirrup (Stapes), Hammer (Malleus). Anvil (Incus)
Glue Ear in Children
The medical term is
otitis media with effusion - a condition in which a sticky glue-like fluid builds up in the middle ear chamber. It is a
very common condition that affects mainly young children aged between two and five years. In most children, glue ear clears up on its own. However, up to 5% of children get persistent glue ear, which if left untreated,
can cause long term hearing loss. Physicians call glue ear 'otitis media with effusion', 'secretory otitis media' or 'chronic secretory otitis media'.
More detailed information on Glue ear in
Children
External Causes of a Burst Eardrum (most
frequent cause)
An external cause for a burst eardrum is a
head trauma such as a blow to the ear or an
object penetrating the ear canal and penetrating the eardrum.
An immediate trip to the emergency room is
mandatory. The ER nurse or doctor will clean the
ear carefully give you an antibiotic shot and
antibiotic ear drops, then prescribe antibiotic
tablets for a 10 day regimen. In severe cases,
you may be referred to an ENT specialist (Ear,
nose, Throat specialist).
More detailed information on burst eardrums
Otitis media (Middle Ear Infection)
Otitis media is an infection or inflammation of the middle ear usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection.
Symptoms
Some of the symptoms of middle ear infection include:
- Earache
- Headache
- Fever
- Discharge from the ear
- Mild deafness
- Difficulties in sleeping
- Loss of
appetite
More detailed information on Otitis Media
Damaged Ossicles (Ossicular
Chain Disruption)
Trauma, serious infections and head injuries
can damage one or all three of the bones that
make up the ossicles. also babies are sometimes
born with malformed ossicles. They can be
repaired or replaced by having an operation
called an ossiculoplasty.
More detailed information on Ossicular Chain
Disruption
Otosclerosis
The last bone in the vibration chain in the middle ear is the stapes. It is attached to the cochlea at the oval window. Otosclerosis is a metabolic imbalance condition that causes new bone to grow over the end of the stapes, where it connects to the cochlea. This leads to a reduction in movement and eventually the bone becomes fixed as no vibration occurs, causing the elimination of transfer of sound to
the inner ear and permanent hearing loss.
More detailed information on otosclerosis
Common
Diseases and Disorders of the inner ear
Sensorineural
hearing loss
Sensorineural
hearing loss is most often the result of damage to tiny hair cells in
the cochlea. These hair cells cannot be replaced.
This damage may happen from the following causes:
- Naturally, as you grow older (Presbyacusis). Hearing aids will be helpful in this situation.
- If you have a disease such as mumps or meningitis.
- If you have to take certain strong drugs - in particular aspirin in very high doses, or antibiotics called aminoglycosides (i.e. streptomycin and gentamycin)
- If you are exposed to loud noise for a long time. (By law, if you work somewhere very noisy you must be provided with earplugs or muffs to protect
the hearing)
- If you have
had a serious head injury with a skull fracture.
- Before a baby is born - for example, if the mother has rubella (German measles) while she is pregnant.
- If a baby is born prematurely or if the mother has a difficult labor.
- Sensorineural hard of hearing from birth may also be genetic. It is common for people in one family to have the same pattern of hearing loss as they get older.
Treatment for
Sensorineural hearing loss
At this time (January 2008) there is no treatment or "cure" for sensorineural hearing loss.
Hearing aids can be used to compensate,
however if hearing loss continues past the
8odB range, the only other option might be a
cochlear implant. The only good treatment
for disease of genetic causes is a cochlear
implant.
Noise
in the Ears (Tinnitus)
Another symptom that is sometimes associated
with true vertigo is tinnitus. Tinnitus is noise
in the ear that may be heard on and off,
continuously or in a pulsation form. This noise
may be buzzing, ringing, roaring, whistling or
hissing. It often goes with many ear disorders,
including Ménière's Disease (see below),
infections such as an inflammation of the middle
ear (otitis
media), or inflammation of the internal ear (labrynthitis), eustachian tube obstruction or noise-induced hearing loss.
More detailed information on Tinnitus
Symptoms of True Vertigo
The symptoms of true vertigo may include a very strong feeling that you are moving or spinning when you are actually still or that the room is moving about you. This illusion may make you feel like you are spinning and circling. This feeling may become worse when you move your head, and it may make you feel nauseated or even make you vomit. These episodes of vertigo usually come and go; and are not constant.
- Sense of movement
- An illusion of spinning and circling
- Worsened with head movements
- Nausea/vomiting
- Episodes come and go
- Rhythmic Eye Movement (Nystagmus)
More information on Vertigo
Ménière's Disease
(vertigo with hearing loss on one-side, noise in the ear and aural fullness)
Ménière's Disease is an inner ear disorder that brings spontaneous episodes of vertigo that can last minutes to hours. Along with the vertigo, there may be some hearing loss in the affected ear that comes and goes, as well as an increase in tinnitus and a sense of fullness in the Ménière's affected ear. Between episodes, you may have a persistent hearing loss and tinnitus in the affected ear. The vertigo associated with Ménière's Disease may happen suddenly, or may build in intensity over several hours and you may begin to experience nausea or vomiting.
More information on Ménière's Disease (Menieres
Dsease)
Recurrent
Vestibulopathy
Patients who suffer multiple episodes of severe vertigo without hearing loss likely have what is known as recurrent vestibulopathy. These attacks of vertigo come and go, and last from minutes to hours. This inner ear disorder is therefore similar to Ménière's Disease, but without any hearing loss or noise in the ear. There is no evidence of brain dysfunction with recurrent vestibulopathy, and it usually goes away over time. Some recurrent vestibulopathy may turn into Ménière's Disease or benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV).
More information on Vestibulopathy
Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo or BPPV
BPPV causes vertigo due to free floating
particles in the inner ear organ of balance
or vestibule disrupting the fluids' normal
flow thus causing disorientation.
The vestibular system located in and around the ear controls our body's sense of balance. When your head moves, the vestibular system sends information to the organs inside the ear, and these organs then pass the information on to the brain.
More information on Benign Paroxysmal
Positional Vertigo (BPPV)
Viral Labyrinthitis
Viral labyrinthitis is a sudden disruption of the messages to the brain from within the inner ear as a result of a sudden viral infection. As a result of this virus, you may experience severe vertigo that usually comes on suddenly and can last from days to weeks, depending on the length of time the body builds up anti-bodies to the virus. There are no other symptoms related to the ear.
More information on Viral Labrynthitis
Vestibular Neuronitis
Vestibular neuronitis is an inflammation of the vestibular nerve that causes a disruption of the message sent by the vestibular nerve to the brain. The first attack of vertigo is usually severe, and is associated with nausea and vomiting, lasting days to weeks. People with vestibular neuronitis do not have hearing loss or tinnitus.
More
information on Vestibular Neurontis
Cochlea implants
If you were born hearing but have lost nearly all
the hearing through sensorineural hard of hearing, and hearing aids are not powerful enough to help, a cochlea implant may be an option for you.
A cochlea implant is a small electronic device consisting of:
- An external battery worn somewhere on the body or clothes
- A microphone/ sound processor usually placed behind the ear which translates sounds into electrical signals and then sends these to the internal part.
- A connecting system which is surgically implanted in the ear. It passes through the ear drum and the middle ear, bypassing the
ossicles.
- A thin receptive wire that is threaded into the full length "snail shell" of the cochlea to transmit electrical impulses from the sound processor to the auditory nerves. The brain doesn't care where the signals originate, just that it can hear them and interpret them
Photo courtesy of the Mayo Clinic
A cochlea implant does not provide perfect hearing, but many people who have cochlea implants can understand speech and recognize different sounds around them. Some can even use the telephone.
Children who are
born deaf can also sometimes have cochlea
implants. Better results are likely if this is
done while they are still very young.
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