Synonym
Otalgia
Symptoms
Patients often complain of pulling pain in the ear, described as very unpleasant (earache). Dull, oppressive pain is also often described. In addition, many patients also complain about hearing disorders (dull hearing) in one or both ears.
Often the ear pain is accompanied by a limited general condition and fever. At times, the pain extends into the head area. Patients sometimes also complain of restlessness and irritability, cover the ear and exert slight pressure with their hands.
In addition to the patient’s medical history, in which the doctor always asks about the type of pain, its duration and onset, the examination of the ear, first from the outside and later from the inside, is the most important diagnostic tool. For the external examination, he will look at the auricle and the area of the ear directly visible from the outside to detect swelling and redness. Possibly, palpation will reveal the overheating of the ear typical of an inflammation.
He will then examine the auditory canal and eardrum by means of a so-called otoscopy. The instrument (otoscope), which is equipped with a light, is inserted into the auditory canal and pushed just before the eardrum. The physician will be able to detect injuries or redness and narrowing of the auditory canal and examine the eardrum.
The eardrum should produce a light reflex and neither be bulged outwards nor pressed inwards. In addition, this diagnostic procedure would also allow for the detection of bleeding and tears in the eardrum. The light reflex produced by the otoscope in the healthy eardrum must be present at the correct location.
In the case of an inflammation of the middle ear, the reflex often disappears. If the doctor finds no disease during this examination and the earache persists, a specialist in ear, nose and throat medicine should be consulted in any case and a computer tomography examination of the skull should be considered in order to rule out a tumorous cause.
