Eustachian tube dysfunction affects how your ears equalize pressure and drain fluid, causing uncomfortable symptoms
Eustachian tube dysfunction is when your eustachian tubes don’t open and close as they should. These tubes connect your middle ears to the back of your throat. The tubes equalize air pressure and help drain fluid from your ears. Eustachian tube dysfunction is when these tubes become clogged.
Eustachian tube dysfunction can affect anyone, but it’s more common in children. Only 1% of the general adult population has ETD. The most common symptom is muffled hearing, almost like you’re underwater.
There are three types of eustachian tube dysfunction. Patulous eustachian tube dysfunction occurs when your eustachian tubes stay open all the time. Sound travels from your nasal cavity to your ears, changing the sound of your voice. Obstructive eustachian tube dysfunction happens when your eustachian tubes don’t open like they should, causing fluid buildup and ear pain or pressure.
Common symptoms to watch for
Additional eustachian tube dysfunction symptoms may include a feeling of fullness in your ears, clicking or popping sounds, dizziness, vertigo or balance problems, ear pain, tinnitus or ringing in your ears and hearing loss. These symptoms can range from mildly annoying to significantly disruptive.
Baro-challenge-induced eustachian tube dysfunction occurs when your eustachian tubes don’t open properly, but ear pain and pressure only happen when you experience altitude changes. This type is called barotrauma, and it can happen while scuba diving, flying in an airplane or driving in the mountains.
What causes the tubes to malfunction
The following conditions may cause inflammation that leads to eustachian tube dysfunction including allergies, chronic acid reflux, viruses like the common cold and flu. Certain conditions can also increase your risk for eustachian tube dysfunction, like cleft palate.
In rare cases, untreated eustachian tube dysfunction can cause hearing loss and permanent damage to your eardrum and middle ear. That’s why it’s important to tell your healthcare provider about symptoms that don’t go away after a couple of weeks.
Your healthcare provider will ask about your symptoms and do a physical examination. They’ll check your ear canals, eardrums, nasal passages and the back of your throat. They may also need to run tests like tympanometry, which tells your healthcare provider how well your middle ear works, and hearing tests to determine if you have hearing loss.
Treatment options range from simple to surgical
Eustachian tube dysfunction can go away on its own, so treatment isn’t always necessary. But you might need treatment if your symptoms linger for more than two weeks. Treatment depends on the cause and the severity of your condition. Treatments may include home remedies, medications or, in severe cases, surgery.
Sometimes, simple home remedies can help with mild cases. To try and clear the blockage, you can chew gum, yawn, swallow or try the Valsalva maneuver, which involves breathing out forcefully while closing your mouth and pinching your nostrils. You can also use a saline spray to clear out nasal passages or use a device that can help you pop your ears.
If you think your baby has eustachian tube dysfunction, give them a pacifier or a bottle. The sucking motion may help clear the blockage.
When medication becomes necessary
When allergies cause eustachian tube dysfunction, over the counter medications can help. You can try antihistamines like cetirizine or diphenhydramine, nasal sprays like fluticasone or azelastine and pain relievers like acetaminophen or ibuprofen.
When an infection causes the condition, your healthcare provider may prescribe antibiotics. They may also give you corticosteroids to help with inflammation. Ask your healthcare provider before using decongestants like pseudoephedrine. While these medications can help with congestion, they can make eustachian tube dysfunction worse in some cases.
Surgical solutions for chronic cases
Chronic eustachian tube dysfunction may require surgery. The goal of this treatment is to bypass your eustachian tubes and address ventilation problems in your middle ears. This restores hearing issues and other symptoms.
Surgical options include myringotomy, where your surgeon makes a small incision in your eardrum to drain the fluid from your middle ear. Sometimes surgeons place ear tubes into the incisions during myringotomy. These tubes provide proper middle ear ventilation for up to one year.
Eustachian tuboplasty involves expanding your eustachian tubes with a balloon. Your surgeon uses nasal endoscopy and small instruments to thread the balloon through your nasal passages and into your eustachian tube. They inflate the balloon for two minutes, then deflate and remove it.
It takes about three to four weeks to heal after myringotomy. People who receive eustachian tuboplasty generally recover in about 24 hours. If you have ear tubes, they should remain in place for 12 to 18 months.
What to expect long term
The good news is that eustachian tube dysfunction usually isn’t serious, and it typically goes away on its own. But the associated symptoms can be annoying and inconvenient. Eustachian tube dysfunction usually goes away in one to two weeks. People with chronic cases may have lingering symptoms for weeks, months or even years.
While you can’t prevent eustachian tube dysfunction altogether, there are things you can do to reduce your risk. Wear ear plugs when you fly to reduce your risk of airplane ear. Avoid extreme temperatures, which can make ear related issues worse. Drink plenty of water to thin out mucus.
If eustachian tube dysfunction causes severe pain, or if symptoms last longer than a couple of weeks, make an appointment with your healthcare provider.
SOURCE: Cleveland Clinic