What are the causes and symptoms of ear discharge?

Ear discharge is the phenomenon of fluids being expelled from the ear. This condition is also known as otorrhea. 

The kinds of fluids that can be discharged from the ear range from blood to pus and other forms of bodily secretions. It is caused by a number of factors, which determine the exact nature of the condition and the diagnosis for treatment. 

What are the causes of ear discharge?
Some forms of ear discharge are natural, such as ear wax which is produced by the body as a form of defense against external particles that may enter the ears. Other forms are unnatural and result from anomalies in the health system. 
The causes of these include the following.

Infections: This is the most common cause of ear discharge and occurs when bacteria and viruses infect the inside of the ear and lead to the secretion of fluids, which builds up in the middle ear or at the eardrum.

Swimmer's ear: This condition is also known as otitis externa and is caused by staying in the water for prolonged periods. It results from excessive exposure to moisture that makes the walls of the ear canal to breakdown allowing bacteria and fungi to enter and infect the ear.

- Trauma: Excess pressure on the eardrum can cause it to rupture and discharge fluids. This happens due to a number of reasons such as exposure to loud explosive sounds or pressure from flying in aircraft and scuba diving.

- Skull injury: Damage to the bones behind the ear as a result of an injury can also lead to ear discharge due to infection.

-Tonsillitis: Inflammation of tonsils may cause pain or a repeated infection in the ear leading to fluid discharge.

What are the symptoms associated with ear discharge?
Some of the symptoms of otorrhea are as follows:
- Abnormal and unusual secretion of fluids from the ear
- Swelling of the ear
- Partial or complete loss of hearing
- Pain and throbbing in the ear
- Accompanying signs such as fever and migraine

Diagnosis and treatment of the problem depend on the exact cause and nature of the condition, which also determines treatment and recovery time.



Why Do You Get an EAR Discharge?

A nose bleed can take place due to a number of reasons, which usually all boil down to acute dryness of the nasal passages. The nosebleed and dryness can stem from sinus, allergic reactions, constant blowing of the nose, infections, and also during very harsh winter months when there is no lubrication in the nose. Nose bleed can also occur due due to conditions, such as high blood pressure and when a foreign object gets stuck inside the nose. Here are a few tips on treating nosebleeds.


1. First step: the very first action when you experience a nose bleed should be to sit down. Once you are sitting, you should firmly pinch the spot that is soft. This lies just above the nostril. Do this for at least ten to fifteen minutes. The trick is to stay upright rather than lying down as this will bring down the blood pressure in the nasal blood vessels to stop further bleeding.


2. Breathe: breathe with your mouth as you lean forward to help in draining the blood into your nose, rather than out of it or towards the throat.


3. Ice compress: find a bag of frozen corn or peas in your freezer or an ice pack, and press this firmly against the nose to help in stemming the bleeding. As you are doing so, do not forget to cover the bridge of your nose with a towel so that it prevents you from catching a cold.


4. Medication and side effects: if you are on any kind of anticoagulants that end up thinning the blood, then you may immediately want to see your doctor about a possible side effects and a change in the medication. This could also be an effect of haemophilia where the bleeding does not stop.


5. Children: if a child who is under the age of two years suffers from such nosebleeds, then you will need to rush him or her to the doctor immediately as it could point at a more serious problem.


6. Anaemia: nose bleeds could also suggest the presence of anaemia, so you may want to see your doctor about lab tests to determine and possibly rule out this cause. You can also start medication accordingly for this kind of an ailment.


7. Nasal packing: the doctor can carry out this procedure with the help of gauze that can seal the spot where the bleeding is happening.


8. Cautery: this is a minor procedure that involves burning the blood vessel that is causing the persistent bleeding with a stick of silver nitrate. The stick will be inserted after local anaesthesia is administered to the patient.

You must see a doctor for severe and prolonged bleeding.

How to Treat a Nosebleed

Ringing in the ears, medically called Tinnitus, is a condition in which the individual hears a certain sound continuously in the ears.

The nature of this sound varies with different individuals. The sound may be whistling, buzzing or bell-like; it might be low or high; seeming to come from a far point or from inside of one's body.

Tinnitus in most cases is subjective where only the affected individual is able to hear the sounds. In some cases, the condition might also be objective wherein the doctor/examiner might be able to hear the sounds on examining.

Understanding the most common cause:

The process of sound waves travelling from the ear to the brain is facilitated by hair cells. When these hair cells are damaged, the brain does not receive signals which cause dysfunction in the activity of neurons. This dysfunctional neuron activity results in the illusion of sounds in the said individual. This illusion is referred to as Tinnitus.

Other causes that might result in Tinnitus are:

Damage around the hearing sections of the brain also might result in ringing sounds / tinnitus. Excessive noise might result into Tinnitus and if not prevented might even progress to hearing loss. There are also some drugs that may cause or worsen the condition.

When to seek help:

In the case of a sudden episode of Tinnitus, it may be associated with hearing loss. Such an episode should be followed by visiting the doctor immediately to prevent any further damage.

Sometimes, the ringing sound occurs rhythmically with your heart beat. It might be because of a pulsating blood vessel and/or because of a sudden hike in blood pressure. This condition would also be relatively easy to cure if reported immediately to the doctor.

If ringing sound occurs with a certain movement, it might be associated with stroke in some cases. In such incidents, conveying the exact symptoms and seeking help sooner would help in treating the underlying cause effectively.

With the first episode of Tinnitus, a regular medication that you intake should be shown to the doctor to rule out medication as the cause or to discontinue a certain medication if found to the causative agent.

Ringing In Ears - What Does it Mean and When to Seek Help

Though nosebleeds are usually not a cause for serious concern, it can sometimes be a scary experience and cause a lot of anxiety. The nose is home to a lot of blood vessels and being fragile they bleed easily. Nosebleeds, however, can be a cause of concern if they happen regularly. While a few factors can be taken care of easily, there are a few rare cases that are actually alarming.

Injury or blow to the nose: Any injury or sudden blow may cause the nose to bleed. The severity of bleeding depends on the intensity and nature of blow/ injury.
Sinusitis: Bleeding is seen in a moderate number of cases of sinusitis. Not every person with sinusitis experiences nose bleeds though.
Hypertension/ high blood pressure: People, who have high blood pressure and one or more of other predisposing factors, might experience nosebleed in some cases. High blood pressure basically increases your chances of experiencing nosebleed.
Liver infection: This condition can be one of the rare causes of nosebleed.
Conditions hampering blood clot formation: There are certain medical conditions in which the blood clot formation does not take place effectively and thus the bleeding incidents can happen with minor causes as well.
Blood thinning medication: People having blood thinning medicines are more prone to experiencing an episode of nose bleed for obvious reasons.
Excessive scratching or sneezing: This might cause the nasal wall to rupture, causing minor bleeding.
Excessive alcohol consumption: In people who consume alcohol in an excessive amount, nose bleeding might occur as an after effect.
Blood cancer/ leukemia: In some cases of leukemia, the patient might experience nosebleed along with other complications.
While some causes can be self-cured at home, a few others need proper treatment from a medical practitioner.

You shouldn't ignore these 9 alarming causes of nose bleed!

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

Remember how Shrek literally pulled out a candle from his ear for the dinner table? Ever tried doing it yourself? Well, the stuff in your ears may be called wax, but it can t really be used to make a candle. However, it certainly can signify a lot about your health. Though the idea of discussing earwax is rather disgusting, it actually plays a pivotal role in keeping your ears healthy and functioning. Earwax protects your eardrums by barring the entry of insects, fungi, bacteria, dust and bacteria. In clinical terms, earwax is also known as cerumen. 

Studies indicate that children typically produce more earwax than adults. The earwax in your ear is a combination of alcohol, shed layers of the ear, unsaturated and saturated long-chain fatty acids and squalene. In order to clean earwax, you should not insert objects too deep in your ear, instead, you can just wipe it off with a cotton swab.  The color and texture of the earwax removed can actually indicate your overall health condition, stress level, genetic ancestry, etc.

Know what your earwax color says about your health 
Pale yellow to yellow earwax: It is the most common type of earwax and indicates overall good health. Children typically produce soft, pale yellow earwax and in case of adults, the color should remain the same, but the texture tends to be sticky. 
Wet vs. dry earwax: Wet and dry are the genetically determined earwax types, wherein, the 'wet type' is dominant and the 'dry type' is recessive. A research, conducted on Biologic variation in health and illness: race, age, and sex differences (1985) by Overfield, Theresa, established that dry-type earwax indicates East Asian and Native American ancestry, while wet-type indicates African and European. 
Thick, dark and black colored earwax: The production of earwax is also influenced by your stress level i.e. when you are stressed out, the glands that are responsible for the production of earwax work overtime and produce excess amount of earwax. As this earwax collects, it can turn thicker and darker thus, this type of earwax is a sign of increased stress level. And, black colored earwax indicates that it has been accumulating in your ears for quite some time and has not been cleaned. To avoid this, it is essential to clean your ears from time to time and in the right way. 
Dry, gray earwax: The gray color of the wax is an indication of dust build-up and must be cleaned properly at regular intervals. However, if your earwax suddenly seems dry and brittle, it could be the sign of a skin infection. Dry earwax accompanied by itchiness in the ear is usually a sign of eczema.
Bloody earwax: Blood in the earwax should never be ignored. This could be caused by an ear infection or can be a sign of ruptured eardrum and you must consult your doctor immediately. 
Thus it is important that you take proper care of your ears so as to ensure that your hearing is maintained and although earwax protects your ears against infections and problems, it must be cleaned from time to time. It is advisable that you get your ears cleaned professionally, in case you are suffering from certain ailments such as Diabetes.

Earwax - Did You Know Its Color Can Say A Lot About Your Health?

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