- Ear drainage - when is it performed? Indications for ear drainage
- Ear drainage - what is it? What does it look like?
- Ear drainage - complications
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Ear drainage is a procedure aimed at restoring proper ear ventilation, and thus improving hearing. Ear drainage is most often performed in children with chronic exudative otitis media. When else is ear drainage performed? What are the indications for the procedure? What is it about? What are the complications after ear drainage.
Ear drainageis a procedure performed to ventilate the inner ear. In a he althy ear, air travels from the nasopharynx through the Eustachian tube to the middle ear. However, in the course of some diseases of the ear, the Eustachian tube is swollen, which means that air cannot enter the middle ear, which impairs the hearing process. It is also aggravated by discharge in the ear, as it is a physical barrier to sounds. Ear drainage allows the discharge of mucus to drain away, reducing pressure in the middle ear, reducing pain, and restoring normal hearing.
Ear drainage - when is it performed? Indications for ear drainage
The most common indication for the insertion of a drain (small, plastic tube) is chronic (that is, the one that lasts more than 3 months) otitis media with bilateral hearing loss of more than 20 dB. However, if there are pathological structural changes in the eardrum, sensorineural hearing loss or delayed speech development in the child, the drain can be inserted earlier.
Ear drainage can also be performed in the case of recurrent acute otitis media - when there are at least three cases in a six-month (or four in a year) period. Then the tube will reduce the pressure in the middle ear, and thus - relieve pain. In addition, the ear tube prevents further acute otitis media as the mucus that forms during the new inflammation finds an outlet, leaving the inside of the ear dry.
Ear drainage can also be performed in the case of Eustachian tube inflammation to improve the movement of drugs to the tympanic cavity, and indirectly also from the Eustachian tube.
Placing a ventilation tube in the tympanic membrane may also be necessary in Meniere's disease - in the case of bothersome recurring episodes of dizziness,because the treatment causes these symptoms to disappear.
Ear drainage - what is it? What does it look like?
Ventilation drainage is a procedure that is usually performed under general anesthesia. Local anesthesia can be used, but only for adults.
The doctor cuts the eardrum with a special knife. Then, through the obtained opening, he introduces a ventilation drain, i.e. a small, plastic tube, equipped with two collars to prevent the drain from displacing. The procedure takes approximately 30-45 minutes. When you wake up, you may feel dizzy, which usually disappears within a few hours.
After the procedure, systematic ENT control is necessary - hearing test and ear condition assessment. Based on the results of these tests, your doctor can judge when the drain can be removed.
Worth knowingEar drainage - is it possible to bathe?
After ear drainage, you can bathe or shower, but for the first week after the procedure, the ears are better protected against water, e.g. earplugs. Until the end of the treatment, it is inadvisable to dive with higher water pressure. In addition, the patient should not fly by plane. You can also not use liquids that dissolve earwax and clean the ears with chopsticks. Failure to do so may result in secondary middle ear infection or the tube may fall out in a way that injures the ear.
Ear drainage - complications
After the procedure, secretions may leak from your child's ear. This is a symptom of inflammation in the ear. In most cases, there are no symptoms other than drainage of fluid from the ear. Then go to the doctor.
After the procedure, the tube may fall out prematurely or become blocked (blocked by secretions).
Other complications after ear drainage include:
- cut and inflammation of the external auditory canal
- hematoma of the tympanic membrane or in the tympanic cavity
- otitis media
If the drain does not fall out of the ear in the expected time and is not removed by the doctor, tympanosclerosis may develop, i.e. middle ear sclerosis, chronic perforation of the tympanic membrane or cholesteatoma.