If you are healthy and “out of the blue” one ear suddenly feels blocked, regard it as a medical emergency.
That’s the message in the Medical Journal of Australia Insight. A blocked or full sensation can be a forerunner of hearing loss or tinnitus in that ear, unless treated swiftly. The feeling of an ear being clogged is a common complaint made to GPs or hospital emergency departments, said Professor Peter Friedland, Head of Clinical Research at the Ear Science Institute Australia and an ENT consultant at the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Perth.
“Unfortunately, there is a general ignorance of this condition, which presents ‘out of the blue’ in 90 per cent of cases in completely well and healthy individuals. Simple high-dose steroids for 10 to 14 days or until a diagnosis is confirmed will give most patients a greater chance of a recovery. The potential benefits of restoring hearing far outweigh the risk of side effects from what may be an unnecessary dose of steroids.” For sudden nerve loss, he says, antibiotics, decongestants, antihistamines and ear-drops are totally ineffective. Friedland says the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders in the US estimates this nerve loss strikes one in 5000 people. While the number has not been measured in Australia, he believes the US incidence can be roughly extrapolated.
By Jill Margo for The Financial Review, http://www.afr.com/business/health/beware-a-blocked-ear–it-could-be-a-medical-emergency-20180430-h0zfxw