Most people listen to music or their favourite videos while on the move, and they spend a considerable amount of time plugging in the headphones or earphones. If you are concerned about the pros and cons of the headphones and earphones, or rather which one is better, you will have to consider various aspects. These include noise isolation, frequency response, noise cancellation and comfort of wearing.

Earphones are devices which are worn on the pinna or the internal part of the ear. This device is also referred to as earbuds, in-ears, canal phones, buds, in-ear headphones, IEMs.

Headphones are equipment worn on or around the ear. These are not considered as handy as the earphones and are also known as ear speakers. Let s evaluate the pros and cons of these two devices and choose the one that is better.

Frequency response curve: This helps in assessing how much distortion is brought about by the devices which relate to the clarity. They should be able to respond equally well to all the pitches without transmitting any frequency more loudly than another. This suggests that the frequency you are receiving should be exactly similar to what has been fed in regardless of the frequency ranges. Typically, the earphones have bad frequency response while the headphones tend to have better frequency response. If you are primarily concerned about the noise distortion, then you should opt for headphones.
Noise isolation: By this, it is understood how well does the gear help in isolating other noises than what you are trying to listen. Generally, higher noise isolation is preferred unless you are willing to hear the sounds of the ambience. Better isolation also ensures that your audio would not bother others surrounding you. A rightly fitted pair of earphones would be able to give you the best noise isolation whereas good over-ear headphones would not be able to seal the sound from going out.
Noise cancellation: Noise cancellation is entirely different from the noise isolation. In the process of noise isolation, the atmospheric sounds which intrude in are reproduced and inverted. This is an excellent feature especially when you are travelling through public transportation or walking down the street. When it comes to earphones, the noise cancellation feature is are not as effective as headphones unless you buy any of the high end pieces. But the headphones are far better in cancelling the noises that are constantly playing in the backdrop.
Judging from all these aspects, the headphones tend to be a better purchase than the earphones, and they are also much more comfortable. Still, it boils down to personal preference at the end. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a general physician.

Earphones Vs Headphones - Which Is Better?

Tinnitus is the ringing in the ears in the absence of any external sound and the ringing heard is not related to any external source. Tinnitus is a symptom due to underlying ear disease.

Epidemiology

Worldwide 10%-15% of the population suffer from tinnitus and those suffering from ear-related problems are 85% of the population.

How do we know whether it is subjective or objective tinnitus?

Subjective tinnitus is the sound which only the patient hears and objective tinnitus is the sound which others can hear as well along with the patient. Ninety-five percent of the people suffer from subjective tinnitus due to problems in the inner, middle, and outer ear whereas rest 5% suffer from objective tinnitus which is due to any structural defect in the ear, neuromuscular condition, or a tumor in the head, neck, and brain.

Causes

Prolonged exposure to loud sound for a long duration can cause permanent damage to the ear, whereas exposure to a sound for short duration may restore hearing back.
Middle ear infection.
Injury to ear.
Age-related hearing loss: Hearing gets hampered with age which starts around 60 years of age. Hearing loss can lead to tinnitus.
Meniere s disease: It is an inner ear disease; tinnitus is an early symptom
Earwax: Normally earwax protects ear canal from dirt. When it accumulates, wax gets built up causing blockage leading to hearing loss.
Emotional stress Diseases of the heart
Drugs, such as aspirin, antidepressants, quinine, cancer medications, and diuretics.
Temporomandibular joint disorder
Acoustic neuroma
How to deal with it?

First, treat the underlying cause.A patient suffering from tinnitus should be counseled every 15 days. It reduces the stress onto those who are suffering from tinnitus and will boost up the patient.Tinnitus maskers/hearing aid is helpful in ignoring tinnitus frequency. Maintain your cardiovascular health with regular exercise, yoga, meditation, and medicines which control blood pressure. All these factors can help prevent tinnitus.

Can tinnitus be fatal?

It can vary from mild to severe which can cause distress such as interference with sleep and normal day to day routine activities. It can affect patient psychologically so much that patient goes into depression and can commit suicide.

How to evaluate tinnitus?

It can include an audiogram (hearing test), measurement of acoustic parameters and some of the imaging studies to be performed.

A pure tone hearing test is to be performed to find out the cause. Acoustic measurement of tinnitus includes measuring several parameters like frequency, the range of frequency, bandwidth, and loudness in dB above hearing threshold.
Residual inhibition helps indicate how useful tinnitus maskers would be.
Imaging studies like magnetic resonance angiography and Transcranial Doppler are to be performed to find out the underlying cause.

Tinnitus - What Causes It?

Our ears are small in size, but  big  in the work they do. Not only do they help us hear, but also help us maintain our body s balance. They thus help us stand, walk, drive you just name it.

Ears are also much bigger in size than they actually are. The part of the ear that we see on our head is only the external ear, there is a middle ear and an inner ear too, silently carrying out complex functions related to hearing and balance. The middle ear that lies behind your ear drum is the seat of balance. And this part is hit hard at the time of an ear infection.

Ear infections cause the Eustachian tubes   small tubes that connect the middle ear to the back of your throat   to become swollen and blocked due to excess mucus. As a result of this, fluid builds up and inflammation takes root in the middle ear, thereby causing pain.

Ear infections can be acute or chronic. Acute infections clear up in a few days, but chronic ones reoccur frequently. If not managed, chronic ear infections can cause permanent damage to the middle and inner ear.

Causes of Eustachian tube blockage are as follows:

Allergies
Sinus infection
Cold
Extreme production of mucus
Smoking
Infected adenoid, which is a tissue near your tonsils that traps harmful bacteria and viruses
There are a few risk factors associated with ear infections. It can be said that young children are more susceptible to these infections. This is because their Eustachian tubes are short and narrow. It has also been seen that infants who are bottle-fed have a higher incidence of ear infections than breastfed babies.

Other risk factors are:

Changes in altitude
Changes in climate
Exposure to tobacco smoke
Use of pacifiers
Symptoms of ear infections:

Pain or discomfort inside the ear
A prolonged feeling of pressure inside the ear
Pus-like ear drainage
Hearing loss
What is also important to know is that the symptoms of an ear infection come and go. 

Symptoms can also occur in one or both ears. Chronic ear infection symptoms can be less noticeable than those of acute ear infections.

Hence, fever and ear ache should spur you to see a doctor. You should be extremely careful with babies younger than six months who have fever or ear infection symptoms.

Your doctor will diagnose an ear infection by checking if there is a draining of fluid from the middle ear, perforation in the eardrum or a collapsed eardrum.

Sometimes, ear infections can lead to the following serious complications:

Hearing loss
Speech or language delay in children
An infection in a skull bone called mastoiditis
Meningitis
Ruptured ear drum

Causes And Symptoms Of Ear Infections

One of the irritating conditions that can affect the mouth of a person is sores, which can be quite painful. These sores can affect anyone of any age group or gender. Sores may make it difficult for a person to eat, speak or even swallow. Here are a few ways through which you can get rid of mouth sores quickly or at least alleviate the symptoms to lessen the pain:

1. Topical Products - There are various types of creams and lotions which are available in the market as over the counter drugs for treating or at least lessening the symptoms of mouth sores. Some of the common chemicals used to treat the sores are Fluocinonide, Benzocaine and Hydrogen peroxide.

2. Food and nutritional supplements - In many cases the sores are caused within the body due to deficiency of nutrients such as Zinc, Vitamin B12 or B6 and the doctor may prescribe special medications to supplement the need for those within the body.

3. Rinses - Certain special types of oral rinses are prescribed by the doctors when treating mouth sores. Most of the rinses prescribed by the doctors have a steroid, namely dexamethasone, which proves to be effective in the treatment of mouth sores.

4. Cauterizing or destroying sores - In certain cases where topical or oral treatments haven't worked it may be necessary to correct it by cauterizing or using a special device to burn and destroy the sore so that new tissues can grow in its place.

5. Oral medications - Certain oral medications may be prescribed for sores which are caused due to underlying physical conditions such as ulcers.

6. Avoiding spicy food - Spicy foods are also a leading cause for canker sores as it may cause chemical imbalances within the stomach as well as inside the mouth and hence should be avoided as much as possible.

7. Improving general oral hygiene - Regular brushing, flossing, and proper oral care will definitely reduce the chances of getting oral sores.

7 Ways to Get Rid of Mouth Sores

The human ear is divided into three parts, namely the outer, middle and inner ear. All these parts function in coherence with each other and help us in converting vibrations into sound and information. The middle ear consists of the air space between the inner ear and the outer ear and contains the bones that transmit the vibrations of the outer ear and translate them into information. This area is prone to infections, especially among children and thus may cause discomfort or pain. 

Symptoms of middle ear infections
Middle ear infections primarily tend to manifest themselves as inflammation of the tissues and buildup of fluids. Some of the symptoms are mentioned below.

1. Infections in children - middle ear infections primarily occur in children although it can occur in adults as well. Some of the common symptoms could be:
A. Ear pain either sitting or standing up and especially while lying down
B. Irritability and crying, which in infants could translate to more than usual crying 
C. Problems with sound and difficulties in hearing
D. Fluid buildup causing balance related problems
E. Discharge of fluid in certain cases
F. Unable to sleep and also loss of appetite
G. In some cases children may have high fever

Causes of middle ear infections 
The primary cause of middle ear infection is due to the presence of bacteria or virus in the area. The eustachian tube, which runs from the middle ear to the back of the throat, is connected to nasal passages as well. Any infection that affects the throat or the nose may also affect the middle ear through this tube. Primary causes for the infections could be
A. Cold or flu like symptoms, which then infect the middle ear as well
B. Otitis media, which is the buildup of fluid and inflammation either due to the presence of bacteria and viruses or even without it
C. Seasonal infections, which are common during late autumn or winters
D. Air pollution is also known to be a factor
E. Infection from others, especially in the case of children when they are part of a group care
F. Children from 6 months to 2 years are also susceptible to middle ear infections as their immune systems are much less developed.

Treatment of middle ear infections
Usually, middle ear infections resolve on their own within a day or so. You can try warm compress with a soft piece of cloth to ease the pain. However, if pain persists for too long then antibiotic medications may be required to fight the infection with pain relief medications to lessen the pain and discomfort.

All About Middle Ear Infections

Nosebleeds can be frightening and dramatic. Luckily, most cases of nosebleeds can be dealt with fair ease. Nosebleeds can be classified into two types depending upon the origin of the nose bleed, namely anterior and posterior.

Anterior bleed is the most common, and the bleeding is from a blood vessel which is present in the front part of the nose. These bleeds can be easily controlled by simple measures taken by doctors or at home.
Posterior nose bleeds are usually indicative of something more complicated and occur mostly in adults or elderly. The bleed can be caused by a rupture in arteries in the posterior part of the nose. These nosebleeds can get severe and may require admission to a hospital for treatment and management. They are the most common in kids in the range of 2 to 10 years and adults older than 50 years.
What can cause nosebleeds?

The most common cause of a nosebleed is probably trauma or an injury to the nose. External trauma includes a sharp blow to the nose, whereas internal injury comprises of injury from picking your nose continuously or irritation from cold.
Less frequently, an underlying condition can also result in nosebleeds. These conditions include diseases that make clotting difficult. The inability of blood to properly coagulate and clot can be contributed by blood-thinning agents like aspirin and warfarin. 
Disease in the liver can also cause problems in the clotting of blood. Rarely, cancer in the nose or abnormal blood vessels present in the nose can contribute to bleeding. Another cause of nosebleeds can be high blood pressure, but it is rarely the only reason.
What are the symptoms of nosebleeds?

Nosebleeds usually occur from one nostril. Sometimes, if the bleeding is excessive, the nostril can get filled with blood and it can cross the nasopharynx and overflow into the other nostril and result in bleeding from both nostrils. The blood can also go into the throat and one may spit out blood from the mouth or vomit out blood (hematemesis).
Excessive blood loss can cause dizziness, confusion, lightheadedness, and can also cause fainting. Excessive blood loss from nosebleeds is not very common.
Although, nosebleeds are rarely a complication, it is advised to consult a doctor if the occurrences are too frequent.

Nose Bleeding - Things That Can Cause It!

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