Ear discharge, also known as otorrhea, is any fluid that comes from the ear.
Most of the time, ears discharge earwax. This is an oil that our body naturally produces. The job of earwax is to make sure that dust, bacteria, and other foreign bodies don’t get into the ear.
However, other conditions, such as a ruptured eardrum, can cause blood or other fluids to drain from your ear. This kind of discharge is a sign that ear has been injured or infected and requires medical attention.
In most cases, discharge from your ear is simply ear wax making its way out of your body. This is natural. Other conditions that can cause discharge include infection or injury.
Middle ear infection (otitis media) is a common cause of discharge from the ear. Otitis media occurs when bacteria or viruses make their way into the middle ear. The middle ear is behind the eardrum. It contains three bones called ossicles. These are vital to hearing.
Ear infections in the middle ear can cause fluid to build up behind the eardrum. If there is too much fluid, there is a risk of perforation of the eardrum, which can lead to ear discharge.
Trauma to the ear canal can also cause discharge. Such trauma can occur while cleaning your ear with a cotton swab if you push it in too deep.
An increase in pressure, such as when you’re flying in an airplane or scuba diving, can also result in trauma to your ear. These situations may also cause your eardrum to rupture or tear.
Acoustic trauma is damage to the ear due to extremely loud noises. Acoustic trauma can cause your eardrum to rupture as well. However, these cases aren’t as common as the others described.
Otitis externa, commonly known as swimmer’s ear, occurs when bacteria or fungus infects the ear canal. It usually occurs when spend long periods of time in water.
Too much moisture inside the ear can break down the skin on the walls of the ear canal. This allows bacteria or fungus to enter and cause an infection.
However, swimmer’s ear isn’t exclusive to swimmers. It can result whenever there’s a break in the skin of the ear canal. This might occur if you have irritated skin as a result of eczema.
A less common cause for ear discharge is malignant otitis externa, a complication of swimmer’s ear that causes damage to the cartilage and bones in the base of the skull.
Other rare causes include a skull fracture, which is a break in any of the bones in the skull, or mastoiditis, which is an infection of the mastoid bone behind your ear.
Kali Mur is a top listed medicine for ear discharge. It proves highly useful in treating chronic ear discharge. In such cases, along with ear discharge, deafness and noises in the ear may also occur. These noises worsen on blowing the nose or on swallowing. Kali Mur also treats swelling or blockage of the Eustachian tube and is an excellent medicine for chronic Catarrhal conditions of the middle ear.
Silicea is a highly recommended treatment for ear discharge with pus. The discharge may also have an offensive or fetid odor. Silicea also works well in cases of bone destruction from ear discharge with a long history. In these cases, there may also be a dullness of hearing and different kinds of noises in the ears. The noises may be roaring, tinkling or fluttering in nature. Sometimes, throbbing pain in the ear may also occur. Caries of mastoid cells caused by ear discharge is also treated well with Silicea.
Psorinum and Tellurium offer a lot of help in case the ear discharge is offensive in nature. Psorinum works well in cases of ear discharge which is offensive, fetid and putrid in nature. The discharge may be brownish in colour and purulent in nature. An intolerable itching in the ears may also accompany the discharge. Tellurium is prescribed when the ear discharge is thin, watery and smells offensive, like fish brine. Another accompanying feature for using Tellurium is intense acridity and excoriating nature of the ear discharge.
Merc Sol works well in cases of ear discharge that are accompanied by an earache. The pain is tearing and shooting in nature. The pain in the ear is worse at night. The discharge from the ear is offensive and mainly yellow in colour. It may also be blood stained. Roaring, ringing and buzzing noises are other accompanying symptoms. Merc Sol is also a top listed medicine for swimmers’ ear infection.e.t.c