They aren’t large–each of your eustachian tubes is only a half inch long and one-eighth inch wide. That’s roughly the diameter of pencil lead. While these tubes may be small, they can cause huge problems when they aren’t functioning correctly, causing pain, dizziness and other issues.
We see many patients who are struggling with eustachian tube dysfunction, and we’ve tailored effective treatment plans to help them find relief and restore their quality of life.
With decades of experience, we are proud to offer high-quality, compassionate care as your trusted ear, nose, throat, and allergy specialists in Raleigh. All of our board-certified physicians are leaders in their field and have graduated from prestigious medical programs. As a physician-owned practice, we operate independently from universities or large research hospitals. As a result, our patients have access to more cost-effective services because they aren’t limited to certain facilities.
Whether you’re struggling with chronic allergies or battling constant sore throats, we’re here to provide the high-quality care you need and deserve. We encourage you to schedule an appointment with us to find relief.
We tailor our treatment plans to meet your individual needs, and we’d like to explore six common solutions for eustachian tube dysfunction that have proven both efficient and effective.
But first, we’ll take a quick look at what the eustachian tube is, how it functions, and what can happen when it’s not working correctly. We’ll also describe symptoms and signs that could indicate problems.
What Is the Eustachian Tube?
This is a small, narrow, tube-like passageway that connects the thimble-sized space behind the eardrum (the middle ear) to the space behind the nose. Its purpose is to provide a way for air to move in or out of the middle ear so that the air pressure in the ear is always equal to the air pressure around us, even with changes in external air pressure. It’s also vital for protecting your ear from pathogens and draining fluid.
How Does the Eustachian Tube Work?
When the eustachian tube is working perfectly, it is closed and opens only very briefly when we swallow or yawn. There is a pulley-like muscle above the roof of our mouth that pulls it open when we swallow or yawn.
Some people can actually hear a “crackling” sound every time this happens. Others hear it only sometimes, while some never hear it. Almost everyone becomes aware of this air movement when their ears finally “pop” during altitude changes such as during airplane flights or while ascending or descending a mountain or high elevator shaft.
During these altitude changes, before the eustachian tube opens to equalize the pressure, one can experience pain in the ear because the difference in air pressure on each side of the eardrum actually stretches the eardrum, which is quite sensitive.
What Is Eustachian Tube Dysfunction?
When this tube is blocked, it causes eustachian tube dysfunction, a condition that affects about 4.6% of American adults–equating to around 11 million people. It’s more common in children, where research has shown that for every one adult that visits a doctor for eustachian tube dysfunction, there are 1.5 visits by children.
One of the results of this dysfunction is otitis media with effusion. This condition occurs when fluid builds up in the middle ear, but without an active infection. Men are more likely to be diagnosed with eustachian tube problems before they turn 20 years of age, while women tend to be affected when they are older.
What Happens When the Eustachian Tube Is Blocked?
If the Eustachian tube is blocked or isn’t working properly, it causes problems such as hearing loss, dizziness and ringing in the ears (tinnitus).
What Are The Symptoms of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction?
Symptoms include:
- Pain
- Feeling of fullness in the ear
- Ringing in the ears
- Difficulty hearing
- Dizziness or balance problems
- Clicking or popping sounds
If you are experiencing these symptoms, we urge you to schedule an appointment with us. If not treated in a timely manner, these symptoms will only get worse and can even severely damage your middle ear and eardrum. In some cases, this can lead to permanent hearing loss.
Our 6 Solutions for Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
Treat the Disorder Causing Inflammation
Inflammation is frequently the culprit behind eustachian tube dysfunction. Situations like chronic allergies, the common cold and even GERD (severe acid reflux) can cause inflammation that paves the way for eustachian tube dysfunction.
In these cases, the solution is to treat the underlying cause.
Pressure Equalization
This is a simple process. The eustachian tube can be reopened by raising nasal pressure. This is accomplished by exhaling while having your mouth and nose closed.
Allergy Testing and Treatment
Often, these are the underlying causes of problems that create issues with the eustachian tube. By testing for common allergies and utilizing immunotherapy, we can rid you of annoying chronic allergies and by doing so, resolve eustachian tube problems.
If allergies are consistently making you miserable and causing eustachian tube dysfunction, then you need to consider seeking our effective allergy treatment and testing. This will not only restore your eustachian tube, but it can eliminate the stuffy nose, sneezing, sore throat and watery eyes that make you miserable.
Myringotomy (ear tube placement)
If fluid in the middle ear is unable to drain, it blocks the eustachian tube, compounding your problems. Through this outpatient ENT surgery, we make a small incision in the eardrum and place a pressure equalization tube in it to allow fluid to escape. As a result, it not only resolves chronic earaches, but eustachian tube problems as well. As the eardrum heals, the tubes eventually fall out on their own.
While you may have frequently heard of ear tube placement in children, it’s also not unusual for adults to need the procedure as well. We conveniently offer ENT surgery in our office for tubes to be placed in adults.
Intranasal Steroids
These medications reduce inflammation, which allows the eustachian tube to open, drain fluid and equalize ear pressure. However, these medications should not be used long-term. We’ll review this course of treatment with you to determine if it is right for you.
Antihistamines
These reduce your body’s reaction to allergens, reducing inflammation.
If the six solutions listed above do not prove to be effective, we may consider an innovative procedure called a BDET where we use a balloon to dilate the eustachian tube.
What Causes Eustachian Tube Dysfunction?
We touched on this a bit earlier, but there is no one, single underlying cause, and several different conditions can be contributors to it.
The eustachian tube can fail to open due to a virus, cold, allergy, sinus infection, scar tissue, or sometimes for no particular identifiable reason. Fortunately, it usually eventually returns to normal function without any treatment, but its symptoms can sometimes last for a very long time.
If it stays completely closed for long enough, the air behind the eardrum in the middle ear can eventually be absorbed by the lining of the middle ear. This can create enough vacuum to cause the ear lining to produce a mucus-like fluid that fills the middle ear space. When this happens, you’ll experience hearing loss similar to that produced by putting an earplug in the ear. Even this will frequently resolve without treatment. If it does not, your doctor can suggest treatment.
When you arrive at our practice for an appointment and evaluation, we’ll consider some of these possible causes:
Swelling
When the tube’s mucus lining swells, it can’t drain fluid. This inflammation is often caused by an upper respiratory tract infection or allergic rhinosinusitis.
Septal Deviation
Your septum is the cartilage that separates your nasal cavity into two sides. If it is crooked or deviated, it can cause extensive issues, including eustachian tube problems.
Horizontal Alignment
Children have eustachian tubes that are more horizontal than those found in adults. As a result, it’s more difficult for it to drain properly, which can lead to chronic ear infections and other problems.
What Are Common Eustachian tube problems?
The eustachian tube works well for most people most of the time. However, there are two very common eustachian tube problems that can cause ear symptoms.
One is when the eustachian tube remains in the open position, which is known as the Patulous Eustachian Tube. The other is when the eustachian tube fails to open with swallowing. Oddly, BOTH of these problems cause the ear to feel stopped up.
Sometimes it’s difficult to sort out which of these two problems is causing the symptom.
What is a Patulous Eustachian Tube?
A eustachian tube that stays in the open position is called a “Patulous Eustachian Tube.” It can be caused by:
- Weight loss
- Hormonal changes from pregnancy
- Menopause
- Hormone medication
- Pre-menopause
Sometimes, this condition has no identifiable cause.
Even though this makes the ear feel “full” or “stopped up,” the hearing stays normal. The full feeling is bothersome, but it does not cause pain and it is no threat to your ear.
Fortunately, this will usually go away by itself.
The body is good at eventually recalibrating the opening and closing of the eustachian tube, but we can’t predict how long this will take.
We’re Here to Help Relieve the Pain and Inconvenience of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
In this article, we’ve reviewed the causes and symptoms of eustachian tube issues and offered some possible solutions. But we also want to emphasize that this dysfunction is more than inconvenient; if left untreated, it can become so severe that it leads to permanent hearing damage.
That’s why we’ve assembled a team of the most accomplished ear, nose and throat doctors in the Raleigh area to provide world-class care to help you get better. Contact us for an appointment.
Key Takeaways
- The eustachian tubes are narrow tubes that connect the middle ears to the back of your nose and throat.
- When the eustachian tubes are inflamed or blocked, this can cause eustachian tube dysfunction, a condition that affects roughly 4.6% of American adults.
- Eustachian tube dysfunction can be caused by several different conditions, including:
- Chronic allergies
- Inflammation
- Flu
- The common cold
- A deviated septum
- A horizontal alignment
- GERD (severe acid reflux)
- Some ways to treat this dysfunction are through nasal steroids, allergy treatment, ear tube placement, and targeting the source of the underlying inflammation.
- If these first lines of treatments are not successful, balloon dilation may be effective.
- It’s vital to get timely treatment for eustachian tube problems from our leading otolaryngologists in Raleigh. Failure to do so can lead to hearing loss and severe damage to your middle ear and eardrum.
The content within this article and others on this website is only for educational purposes and should not be considered as medical advice. For any questions or concerns, please consult with your healthcare provider.
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Sources:
Cleveland Clinic, “Eustachian Tubes: Anatomy,” https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/22072-eustachian-tubes
Cleveland Clinic, “Eustachian Tube Dysfunction,” https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/22527-eustachian-tube-dysfunction
Sahar Hamrang-Yousefi; Jimmy Ng; Claudio Andaloro, Eustachian Tube Dysfunction, National Library of Medicine, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555908/#:~:text=Prevalence%20is%20greater%20in%20children,Go%20to:
Shan A, Ward BK, Goman AM, Betz JF, Reed NS, Poe DS, Nieman CL. Prevalence of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction in Adults in the United States. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2019 Oct 1 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6681559/