When you are experiencing an earache or a stuffy ear, try standing tall and keeping your head erect so that you can help drain your middle ear. You can also try gargling salt water, which may help to clear your eustachian tubes.
First, warm salt water helps to soothe and shrink swollen tissues. It's a go-to natural remedy for sore throats, which often accompany earaches. In addition, because the eustachian tube connects to the back of the throat, a saltwater gargle may help to relieve swelling, allowing trapped water to drain.
You can do exercises to open up the tubes. This includes swallowing, yawning, or chewing gum. You can help relieve the “full ear” feeling by taking a deep breath, pinching your nostrils closed, and “blowing” with your mouth shut. If you think your baby may have Eustachian tube dysfunction, feed him or her.
Close your mouth, hold your nose, and gently blow as if you are blowing your nose. Yawning and chewing gum also may help. You may hear or feel a "pop" when the tubes open to make the pressure equal between the inside and outside of your ears.
Medical treatments for Eustachian tube dysfunction
Your doctor may first recommend over-the-counter treatments, such as: Decongestants to reduce the swelling of the lining of the tubes. Antihistamines and/or steroid nasal spray to reduce an allergic response.
Most cases of Eustachian tube dysfunction clear up in a few days with the help of over-the-counter medication and home remedies, but symptoms can last one to two weeks. If you're still having symptoms after two weeks, or they're getting worse, you may need more aggressive treatment.
Eustachian tube dysfunction may occur when the mucosal lining of the tube is swollen, or does not open or close properly. If the tube is dysfunctional, symptoms such as muffled hearing, pain, tinnitus, reduced hearing, a feeling of fullness in the ear or problems with balance may occur.
In my experience, the most common cause is chronic nasal congestion, either from allergies or environmental irritants. Infection of the adenoids or the sinus or nose also are likely causes; to determine this, an ear, nose and throat doctor would visualize the adenoids to assess their condition.
Home remedies
Many people will find temporary relief from ETD pressure buildup by chewing gum or yawning. Another popular method is to close your eyes, plug your nose, and blow air to “pop your ears” to relieve some of that pressure, although you should avoid this if you have a cold.
Eustachian tube massage
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. Repeat this process three times on each side, three times a day.
Allergies and infections (like the common cold and the flu) are the most common causes of eustachian tube dysfunction. These conditions can cause inflammation and mucus buildup, leading to blockage. GERD, or chronic acid reflux, can also cause ETD.
Chronic ETD is unlikely to go away on its own and must be treated by a healthcare professional.
Sometimes, dried mucus or other particles can get stuck in or near the eustachian tube and cause symptoms. Clearing the passageways can help eliminate anything clogged in the passage.
When you gargle with salt water, the saline solution coats your mouth and throat. This can help loosen mucus, lessen inflammation, and ease throat pain. Gargling with salt water may also eliminate the virus or bacteria that causes a sore throat.
Gargle salt water
A saltwater gargle can aid in reducing mucus in both the nose and the ears. It is also an easy remedy.
Gargling with salt water may help soothe a sore throat and clear the eustachian tubes in the ears. The eustachian tube is a canal that connects the middle ear to the upper part of the throat and back of the nasal cavity—it regulates air pressure and drains fluids from the middle ear).
In most cases, Eustachian tube dysfunction can be managed at home. There are several different things you can try. Steam inhalation can ease symptoms by getting more warm air into your nose and subsequently your Eustachian tubes.
We prefer non-drowsy antihistamines such as Claritin, Zyrtec, and Xyzal so you can keep your eyes open during the day. You can look for their generic counterparts — loratadine, cetirizine, and levocetirizine — which are, once again, just as effective and cheaper.
If your ears are plugged, try swallowing, yawning or chewing sugar-free gum to open your eustachian tubes. If this doesn't work, take a deep breath and try to blow out of your nose gently while pinching your nostrils closed and keeping your mouth shut. If you hear a popping noise, you know you have succeeded.
The eustachian (say "you-STAY-shee-un") tubes connect the middle ears to the back of the throat. The tubes help the ears drain fluid. They also keep air pressure in the ears at the right level.
Yawning and chewing gum also may help. You may hear or feel a "pop" when the tubes open. To ease ear pain, apply a warm washcloth or a heating pad set on low. There may be some drainage from the ear when the heat melts earwax.
Pseudoephedrine is an ingredient found in oral decongestants. Oral decongestants are used in the treatment of eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD) and can help decrease peritubal edema provoked by allergies or URI.
There are four tiny muscles which assist in the opening of the Eustachian tube. One of these, the hammer muscle, is one of the two main muscles in the middle ear. Poor performance of Eustachian tube muscles can be the result of muscular tension or poor muscular tone in the head, neck and jaw areas.
The main symptom is muffled or dull hearing, often described as being underwater or ears with cotton wool. Ear pain can be due to a pressure difference causing the drum to over stretch. Other symptoms include fullness in the ear (pressure), tinnitus (ringing), dizziness, popping or clicking noises.
When it becomes stretched inward, patients often experience pain, pressure, and hearing loss. Long-term blockage of the Eustachian tube leads to the accumulation of fluid in the middle ear space that further increases the pressure and hearing loss.