The most common form of hearing loss due to a sinus infection is caused by severe congestion and sinus blockage — specifically, sinus blockage of the Eustachian tube, a small section of your ear that helps regulate pressure. Fluid in the Eustachian tube can cause muffled hearing.
Yes. A sinus infection can cause fluid to be trapped in the ear behind the eardrum. Bacteria and viruses can grow and can cause an ear infection. It's especially important to get to the doctor if you're feeling pain or pressure in the ear.
If you are having difficulty hearing because of sinusitis, infection, or other sinus issues, sounds may sound muffled or distant, as if heard underwater or through a tunnel.
This may take up to a couple of weeks. Sinus infections have been known to stick around even longer. A bit of patience will be required before your ears return to normal (counterintuitive though it might be), and your expectations need to be, well, adjustable.
Popping your ears can help open the eustachian tube, allowing fluid to drain. The simplest way to pop your ears is to yawn, chew, or swallow. You may also want to try popping your ears using something called the Valsalva maneuver: Take a deep breath and hold it.
There may be discomfort, pus-like ear discharge or a sensation of subdued hearing. Fluid accumulation can also cause ear or throat pain. But in the case of a sinus infection, there is a feeling of fullness and pressure in the ears.
This can happen for brief periods during air travel, but also due to allergies, sinus or ear infections, or other respiratory viruses (including COVID-19). Sudden onset of muffled hearing in one ear may signal an urgent problem requiring prompt treatment to prevent or reduce possible hearing loss.
Antibiotics are not needed for many sinus infections. Most sinus infections usually get better on their own without antibiotics. When antibiotics aren't needed, they won't help you, and their side effects could still cause harm. Side effects can range from mild reactions, like a rash, to more serious health problems.
Fatigue. Fighting a sinus infection demands energy from the body, so it is common to feel fatigued. Some people feel exhausted because they cannot breathe easily or are in pain.
For adults — See a health care provider if:
You have symptoms for more than 10 days. You have a high fever. What's coming from your nose is yellow or green. You also have sinus pain or fever.
In some cases, muffled hearing may resolve in a few hours, such as in cases of congestion or a mild cold. However, if muffled hearing persists, it's best to seek care from a medical professional, as the earlier the condition is diagnosed, the better chance you have of receiving successful treatment.
Common causes of blocked or plugged up ears
Why is sound muffled when there doesn't appear to be anything inside your ear canal? The causes can range from the earwax to allergies to infections (yes, including COVID) to more insidious conditions like an anxiety disorder or Meniere's disease.
Untreated sinusitis allows bacteria and other harmful pathogens to enter the bloodstream and travel all throughout the body, leading to the following potentially life-threatening conditions. Meningitis develops when infection targets the brain or spinal fluid. It requires immediate medical attention.
What happens if sinusitis is left untreated? You don't necessarily need to treat sinusitis — it often goes away on its own. Very rarely, untreated sinus infections can lead to life-threatening infections. This happens if bacteria or fungi spread to your brain, eyes or nearby bone.
If this is the case, a sinus infection left untreated may cause further complications (as chronic sinusitis can actually spread to the eyes and the brain). When sinusitis spreads to areas around the eyes, you may experience redness and swelling, which can reduce vision.
A mild case of airplane ear can cause muffled hearing or some hearing loss, a feeling of "stuffiness" inside your ear, and possibly pain. goes away when you yawn, swallow, or chew gum. But if it lasts more than a few hours or seems severe, call your doctor.
In many cases, a muffled ear will go away on its own. This is especially true for conditions like airplane ear, or sickness-related hearing loss.
Your ear congestion may have happened during an ear infection and never went away, or may get worse when eating certain foods, or they may have become plugged at the onset of an autoimmune condition.
If you're experiencing nasal drip with thick yellow-green mucus, you likely have a sinus infection, not an ear infection. Ditto with a cough, bad breath and reduced ability to smell. However, signs such as sharp stabbing pains in your ear canal, earaches and muffled hearing point to ear infections.
Pseudoephedrine is used to relieve nasal or sinus congestion caused by the common cold, sinusitis, and hay fever and other respiratory allergies. It is also used to relieve ear congestion caused by ear inflammation or infection.
When the Eustachian tube gets plugged up, you may not hear clearly and sounds may become muffled. It also commonly leads to feeling pressure, discomfort, and fullness in your ear. Tissue inflammation and mucus secretions can largely be a part of the reason for Eustachian tube dysfunction.
Eustachian tube massage
Use your finger to find a bony bump behind your ear lobe. Using firm, steady pressure, slide your finger down until you feel a groove between your ear lobe and jaw. Trace that groove all the way down your neck to your collarbone using the same firm pressure.
Ear blockage
A common culprit for muffled hearing is excessive ear wax (cerumen). Ear wax can sometimes build up in the ear canal and cause a blockage. This ear wax can dry up and harden over time, increasing the risk of impaction. Impacted ear wax can affect your ability to hear.