East Panhandle News

• Eustachian tubes are small tubes that run between your middle ears and upper throat.
• Blocked eustachian tubes can cause pain, hearing difficulties and a feeling of fullness in the ears.
• One possible treatment for eustachian tube dysfunction is balloon dilation.

Dr. Matthew Blair of Gulf Coast Breathe Free Sinus & Allergy Centers says that sinus infections may cause blockages in the eustachian tubes, which can lead pain or fullness in the ears, and even temporary hearing loss due to eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD).

"If you've ever driven in the mountains or flown on an airplane, you can probably recall when you're going up in altitude or coming down in altitude, your ears will feel stuffy," Blair told East Panhandle News. "Then all of a sudden, your ear will pop and you'll feel (better). Well, people who have eustachian tube dysfunction, they don't get that opening and they always feel like that, even at regular altitude. It's just a plugged sensation in the ear, and that is when the eustachian tube doesn't work." 

Sinus infections lead to blockage of the eustachian tube, which can cause fullness or a sensation of being "underwater," similar to wearing earplugs.

The eustachian tubes are usually closed, except when you chew, swallow or yawn, according to Healthline. Eustachian tubes are also responsible for equalizing ear pressure and draining fluid from the middle ear behind the eardrum. 

Since eustachian tubes are small, they can get blocked easily, leading to ETD, which is common and often heals on its own or with home remedies, such as chewing gum, yawning or using a saline nasal spray. In more severe cases, however, a visit to the doctor may be needed.

One treatment for ETD is balloon dilation, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). 

"Over a long period time, it can be pretty detrimental to the eardrum itself. You can develop things like cholesteatoma, chronic infections in the ear from it," Blair explained. "Then what we can do in the office is the same device that we use to dilate the sinuses, we can use for the eustachian tube. We place the balloon inside the tube in the back of the nose, which connects the ear to the nose, and we insert that balloon and leave it in there for approximately 60 seconds. The patient is very comfortable. What that ends up doing is remodeling that eustachian tube, so it functions better and you get the symptom relief. And you don't experience that fullness in your ears, that plugged ear sensation."

The procedure is relatively new and is minimally invasive. A study of 126 children who underwent the procedure found that there were no reported complications, and symptoms improved in 80% of cases, according to the NCBI.

If you're interested in learning more about ETD or sinusitis symptoms, take this Sinus Self-Assessment Quiz.