Numbness in ear and cheek
Sensitivity disorders in the ear or cheek area can also be early symptoms. In a sudden hearing loss, the symptoms often start with a furry feeling in the auricle or the feeling of having “absorbent cotton in the ear”. The main symptom is a painless inner ear hearing loss. A numbness of the cheek can in some cases occur as an early symptom of facial paralysis. In both cases, you should seek immediate medical attention.
Diagnosis
The diagnosis of a sensitivity disorder in the facial area is mainly made on the basis of the patient’s clinic. Describing the symptoms and the clinical examination are very important at this point. The first step is the exact identification of the symptoms and possible accompanying symptoms, as well as underlying diseases. In the clinical examination the different stimuli such as touch, pain, temperature and vibration should be tested. A thorough physical and neurological examination is indispensable for finding the cause.
Other accompanying symptoms
Important accompanying symptoms are paralysis or speech disorders. In the case of a circulatory disorder of the brain, the numbness of the face can be accompanied by paralysis of the face and arm or the whole body. In this case you should seek medical help immediately.
In case of sensitivity disorders, one should also think of multiple sclerosis, which can be accompanied by other neurological failures, such as paralysis, eye movement disorders or vision problems. Other sensations that can occur in the face are pain. This can be a so-called trigeminal neuralgia, which is often caused by a compression of the trigeminal nerve by a blood vessel.
The pain is electrifying, flashlike, one-sided and very strong. The duration is a few seconds, but the attacks can repeat up to 100 times a day. During the course of the disease, a dull pain persists between attacks.
Facial pain can also occur due to cluster headache. This is also the strongest pain, which occurs mainly in the area of the eye and is strictly unilateral. The attacks usually occur at night and last between 15 and 180 minutes.
They can repeat up to 8 times during the course of the day. Accompanying symptoms are increased tearing of the eye and redness, runny nose or sweating of the face half. Cluster headaches usually accumulate in certain periods and can completely disappear between episodes.
