I am diagnosed with ruptured eardrum. Is that the reason for my jaw pain and numbness?

Question

Hello doctor,

I am currently trying to get over my seasonal sinus infection. However, after taking a nap a couple of days ago, I lost most hearing in my left ear. I went back to the urgent care and was told I had a ruptured eardrum. I was given drops to put in my ear. However, I cannot help but notice that around my ear on the left side is partly numb and the pain goes into my jaw joint. Should I be concerned about this numbness and the pain in my jaw? I told the Urgent Care NP about it, and she just gave me a confused look, saying that it is weird, offering no answers.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

If you have a ruptured drum, 1. Do not put ear drops. 2. Do not let water enter the ears. 3. Visit an ENT soon. 4. Assess the size of perforation. 5. Ask ENT if it will heal spontaneously. Some perforations are small and heal on their own in healthy individuals, but others do not. Regarding the pain in jaw joint and numbness, the perforation does not explain that. However, it could be that your sinus and nose problem resulted in rising of infection into the particular ear through the eustachian tube and caused a disease of the middle ear resulting in the discharge of pus through that ear eventually. In that case, the condition should heal on its own. But you need a course of antibiotic, nasal and systemic decongestant, antiallergic and painkiller.