Barotrauma of the ear: symptoms, treatment, consequences

The tympanic membrane is located between the external passage of the ear and its middle passageway. It is a membrane that perceives the sound signal before everyone else. It is also worth noting that the tympanic membrane is sensitive to pressure changes, both to its increase and to a decrease.

The auditory tube ensures the integrity of the tympanic membrane. It looks like a channel that connects the middle ear and nose. The auditory tube also connects with the environment. Due to this structure of organs, pressure is distributed on the tympanic membrane. The pressure is equalized from the outer passage and from the middle ear. Thus, the tympanic membrane remains intact.

In the case of a sudden change in pressure on the membrane, it can be injured. Her injuries are called "barotrauma of the ear." Also such a problem can occur due to violation of patency of the auditory tube.

Why

As it was said above, the barotrauma of the ear occurs due to the fact that there is a sharp pressure on the membrane. A sharp pressure jump can occur for the following reasons:

1. Diving into the water, or vice versa, diving.
2. Rapid climbing. Ear barotrauma often occurs in pilots and astronauts.
3. Depressurization at height also causes damage to the membrane.
4. Shock wave from any explosion. For example, in the case of hostilities.
5. Medical errors that occur during examination or treatment of the ear. For example, with pneumomassage.
6. Often, the damages of the tympanic membrane occur due to such ailments as otitis, rhinitis, adenoids, swelling and hypertrophy of the mucous membrane of the auditory tube. If, for some reason, the auditory tube does not function properly, but its patency is difficult, then barotrauma of the ear arises, the symptoms of which will be discussed below.

What starts to bother a person with such a disease? Symptoms

When there is barotrauma, a person feels a strong blow to the head or ear. Further in the ear there is noise or crackling, and the level of hearing also decreases. The general condition of the patient worsens.

With a barotrauma with a slight tearing of the membrane, a person may not feel any symptoms. But after a certain period of time, the patient has otitis. It occurs due to the fact that an infection gets into the injury site.

If the barotrauma has a severe character, then the person feels a loss of hearing. There may also be a bleeding, dizziness. A person can start disoriented in space, there is a probability of loss of consciousness.

How is it diagnosed?

If a person is in consciousness, then it turns out that what could have caused the appearance of barotrauma. Namely, what circumstances could cause a jump in pressure. If the patient does not have bleeding from the external ear canal, then such procedures as otoscopy or microscopy are prescribed to him. During these procedures, the doctor carefully looks at the state of the tympanic membrane. If the patient has a middle ear barotrauma, then the hemorrhage and tears are visible in the membrane. The latter can be single or multiple. There are cases when only the inner part of the tympanic membrane is torn, then it becomes blue. This is evident when performing otoscopy. The blue color of the membrane means that the middle ear is filled with blood.

Audiometry

In order to determine whether a patient has a hearing impairment or not, he is given a type of examination, such as audiometry.

In the case when the patient is unconscious and the ear bleeds, the diagnosis becomes clear. This is a severe form of barotrauma. In this case, any examination is contraindicated until the time of resuscitation.

Further, in order to exclude or confirm other damage to the ear, brain and other organs, a person is given such types of examinations as ultrasound, x-ray or MRI.

Barotrauma of the ear. Treatment

If the barotrauma is mild, the patient is prescribed sedatives, sedatives, and physiotherapy.

If a person has a ruptured eardrum, there is a risk of infection. Therefore, the treatment scheme of the patient will be directed to preventive actions against the occurrence of otitis media. A person is treated with upper ear treatment and tampons that are wetted in a solution of a drug containing an antibiotic. A sterile bandage is placed on top of the tampon. In addition, a person is prescribed anti-inflammatory, analgesic and soothing drugs.

There are cases when the tympanic membrane is damaged so much that the above mentioned methods of treatment can not contribute to its recovery. In this case, the patient will be assigned an operation. The surgical method of treatment by means of plastic will allow to restore the damaged membrane.

What preventive measures can prevent this problem

There are a number of preventive measures that can ensure the safety of the tympanic membrane.

1. When flying during the takeoff and landing, it is recommended to dissolve the sweets, chew the cud. Also, swallowing provides better patency of the auditory tube.
2. Also, during the landing and take-off of the aircraft, it is recommended to keep the mouth open. This will ensure the balancing of the pressure. The same method should be used when riding on attractions, where a sharp rise and release of a person.
3. When diving to depth, you should remember and follow the safety rules.
4. If a person has rhinitis or otitis in the ear, then it is necessary to implement measures that will contribute to the recovery of a person. It is also recommended to avoid situations with pressure drops during the course of the above diseases.

First aid

How to act if a person has barotrauma of the ear and accessory nasal cavity? What help to provide in case, when there is a dive under water and a person has uncomfortable sensations in the ear, namely, is its stuffiness? You should stop the descent, climb one or two meters. Then, weaken the pressure. If you can get rid of stuffy nose, you can continue diving. In the event that uncomfortable sensations continue to be present, it is necessary to stop the immersion process to a depth.

When a person has signs of rupture of the tympanic membrane (these include pain, bleeding and hearing loss), the patient needs to apply a bandage. In no case he can not vysmarkivatsya. Then you should send the patient to a medical institution. There he will be examined by a doctor, makes a necessary examination and prescribes a course of treatment. The course of treatment will depend on the severity of the injury.

It should be noted that even with minor damage to the tympanic membrane, procedures such as bathing, washing the upper ear, blowing the ear tube are not allowed. These rules should be observed within the first two days after the event. If the health measures have the desired effect, then in a couple of weeks the body will fully recover. There will also be no hearing loss.

Effects

If a person has barotrauma ear, what consequences can there be? Now we'll figure it out. If a person does not treat barotrauma and does not take any measures to improve the body, complications may appear. As a rule, there is an inflammatory process that goes into the otitis media of the middle ear.

Also, a disease such as baro-otitis may occur. With this disease in the ear accumulates fluid. This condition leads to the presence in the ear of constant noise. Also, a person has a hearing loss and a feeling of fullness of the ear with water. Baro-otitis treatment is similar to the treatment of barotrauma. With such a disease a person can not be flaunt, as with this process there is pressure on the ear. Also it is not recommended to make sharp movements. The fact is that flaunting and sudden movements can lead to infection in the middle ear.

Barotrauma of the ear from shock

There are mechanical injuries to the ears. These include bruising, biting or trauma. If we talk about traumatizing the tympanic membrane, they can arise for several reasons. For example, direct damage to the tympanic membrane can occur.

As a rule, it occurs when the ear is cleaned with a cotton swab and a random jerk. In addition, there are cases when the tympanic membrane can be damaged due to accidental contact of the branches during walking or running. It can also happen when a person attempts to extract a foreign body from the ear. Also, such an injury, as a longitudinal fracture of the temporal part, leads to rupture of the tympanic membrane.

Home Treatment

What can you do to a person who has an ear barotrauma? Home treatment what can be done?

You should know that you first need to assess the severity of such a trauma. If the barotrauma of the ear is severe, then you should not self-medicate. Then you need to go to a medical institution for professional help.

There are also several folk ways of treating the ear. In order to cope with the pain in the ear, you can use propolis tincture. It is made on an oil-alcohol basis.

Another popular remedy is the onion. In the bow, a groove is made and cumin is poured, on top the bulb is closed with crumb of bread. Then the onion is baked. After that, juice is squeezed out of it, which is digested by the ear.