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An ear disorder is any condition that changes or harms the shape or structure of your ear — including ears shaped differently from birth, injuries that change the ear's shape, and growths on or in the ear.
How the ear works
| Part | What it does |
|---|---|
| Outer ear | the part you see, plus the ear canal; it catches sound and sends it to the eardrum |
| Middle ear | sound makes the eardrum vibrate, and three small bones, the ossicles, carry the vibrations further in |
| Inner ear | turns vibrations into nerve signals the brain hears as sound, and helps you keep your balance |
Many conditions affect hearing or balance:
- ear infections — the most common illness in infants and young children;
- tinnitus — ringing or roaring in the ears;
- Meniere's disease, which may be caused by fluid problems in the inner ear;
- ear barotrauma — injury from sudden changes in air or water pressure.
Some of these can lead to hearing disorders and deafness.
Causes
- Ear shapes present at birth, such as microtia and anotia — usually with no known cause, though sometimes linked to genes or to certain medicines taken in pregnancy;
- injuries from hits, cuts or bites;
- growths that form after an injury, a piercing, repeated cold water, or years in the sun;
- infections such as perichondritis, often starting from a cut or piercing;
- otosclerosis — bone growth in the middle ear, which can run in families.
Signs
Sometimes the only sign is how the ear looks. Others:
- changes in the ear's size or shape;
- swelling, redness or growths;
- pain or tenderness;
- scarring or changes in skin color;
- cuts or holes in the ear or eardrum;
- in some cases, slow hearing loss.
Tests
Your provider may:
- do a physical exam;
- look inside the ear with a lighted tool, an otoscope;
- order imaging tests to see bones or tissue more clearly;
- test your hearing;
- order a biopsy to check whether a growth is cancer.
You may be referred to a doctor who specializes in the ear, nose and throat.
Treatment
Treatment depends on the cause. Some disorders are treated with medicine; others need surgery to reshape the ear or remove a growth. If your hearing is affected, you may need a hearing aid.
Prevention
Most ear disorders you are born with can't be prevented. You can help prevent some others by:
- wearing head protection in sports;
- treating cuts and injuries;
- caring for new piercings;
- protecting your ears from cold water and the sun.
Sources
Based on "Ear Disorders," MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine; a work of the United States government in the public domain.
Licencia: CC0 1.0 (dominio público) · Adaptado de medlineplus.gov
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