Patient's Query
Hi doctor,
Three to four days back, I was exposed to fireworks that affected my ear. I had no previous history of ear problems. Yesterday I went to a general physician who told me my ear drum looks fine. Currently, I am taking hypertensive drugs and water pills. However, the ear still feels clogged. Kindly help me.
Hello,
Welcome to icliniq.com.
You have been exposed to sudden loud sounds; this usually results in acoustic trauma. There are two variants of it. Better assessment can be done if you can answer the following questions. 1. What drugs have your general physician prescribed? 2. How many hours has it been after the exposure? 3. Do you have any history of ear pain or giddiness?
Patient's Query
Hi doctor,
The incident occurred around 10 pm four days back. When I was attending a backyard firework show, one of the fireworks fell, causing a blast near my right ear. The fullness improves when I lay down or pull down on my ear. I can put on headphones and listen to someone talk, and it does not bother me at all because something is pushing on my ear. I have no history of ear pain or giddiness. My general physician looked in my ear and said the eardrum was fine, and in the non-affected ear, some wax was blocking the eardrum. I am on Amlodipine for blood pressure and Hydrochlorothiazide for fluid retention. I as well take 81 mg of Aspirin every night.
Hello,
Welcome back to icliniq.com.
You might be experiencing a temporary threshold shift of noise-induced hearing loss. Usually, it is temporary and is not relieved within a few hours, and it takes up to two weeks after exposure to the loud noise. It happens due to damage to certain structures in your inner ear. Is there a facility near you where you can get pure tone audiometry done? Pure tone audiometry is a simple hearing assessment usually done by audiologists. This will show the actual changes in your hearing. In addition, I suggest you take a short course on oral steroids and Betahistine.
Patient's Query
Hi doctor,
There is a possibility of a place in my town that does that test. I will check on that in the morning. My general physician had told me to wait and see when I saw him yesterday. Do I have to contact my general physician about the oral steroids and Betahistine?
Hello,
Welcome back to icliniq.com.
I suggest you contact your general physician for a short course of Prednisolone, usually given 1 mg per kg body weight, and Betahistine tablets. Studies have shown that in cases of acoustic trauma, the earlier the treatment is started faster the recovery occurs. As I suggested earlier, get an audiogram, consult your general physician for drugs, and avoid hearing louder sounds in your right ear for some days like using earphones, etc.
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Answered byDr. Akshay. B. K.
Medically reviewed byiCliniq medical review team
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