Hearing healthcare: A ruptured eardrum

The old line about not sticking anything in your ear smaller than your elbow is there for good reason.

A ruptured eardrum can result from something as simple as being too aggressive with a Q-tip when trying to clean ear wax.

Eardrums can also become ruptured due to scuba diving or flying due to barotrauma, which happens when the barometric pressure outside the ear is different from the pressure inside the ear. Sudden loud noises and explosions may also cause perforated ear drums. This is known as acoustic trauma.

Warning signs of ruptured eardrums include:

• Pain in the ear
• Hearing loss in the afflicted ear
• Vertigo or dizziness
• Fluid draining from the ear

The eardrum is necessary for hearing because it vibrates in response to sound waves and conveys the vibrations to the brain, but in addition it works as a shield to isolate the inner ear and keep it clear of infection. Your inner ear is basically a protected, sterile environment when your eardrum is intact, but if it has been ruptured or torn, microbes are free to get in, and can bring about severe infections.

A ruptured eardrum – often called a perforated eardrum or technically, as a tympanic membrane perforation – is a puncture or tear in this thin important membrane. A punctured eardrum can occur as the result of many causes, the commonest of which is an ear infection, which in turn causes fluid to press against the membrane and finally cause it to tear. The eardrum may also be punctured as the result of poking objects into your ear, like, yes, a Q-tip.

If you experience any of these warning signs, see a specialist, because if the eardrum is punctured, immediate and appropriate treatment is essential to avoid infection and hearing damage. What you chance by not having these symptoms treated are major inner ear infections and cysts, and the potential for permanent loss of hearing.

Hearing Healthcare of Virginia

Hearing Healthcare of Virginia is offering complimentary hearing screenings at its six locations in the Shenandoah Valley and Central Virginia – Charlottesville, Covington, Culpeper, Fishersville, Harrisonburg, and Lexington.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (888) 512-1164.

More online at www.HearVirginia.com.