PSA - Online Hearing Care

Ear Anatomy

Can you believe how complex our ear anatomy is? Click the information icon in the Ear Anatomy or open the links at the bottom of this page to take a tour into the outer, middle, and inner ear. You might find how amazing our ears are.

1Cerumen, or earwax

2Itchy ears

3Vertigo

4Eardrum perforation

5Otitis media (middle ear issues)

6Ear pressure disequilibrium

7Aging related hearing loss (presbycusis)

8Sudden hearing loss

9Tinnitus

Anatomy of the Ear

1Cerumen, or earwax

Functions:
- The first line of defense in the ear.
- Antibacterial acidic environment.
- Moisturizing, preventing insects and dust.

2Itchy ears

Causes:
- Dry itchiness caused by over cleaning.
- Too much moisture in the ear might cause itchiness and even fungal infections.
- Outer ear infections.

3Vertigo

Causes: Vestibular neuritis, endolymphatic hydrops, and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo ( vertigo induced by position changes).
Symptoms: Spinning dizziness, vomiting, and unstable gait.
Methods of relief: Keep the head and body in stable positions, close the eyes to rest, and the medications.

4Eardrum perforation

Causes: External force, infection, and ear pressure.
Symptoms: Redness, heat, swelling, and pain.

5Otitis media (middle ear issues)

Causes: Allergic rhinitis, common cold, and infection.
Symptoms: Aural fullness, hearing loss, fever, and tinnitus.

6Ear pressure disequilibrium

Causes: Pressure changes (e.g. climbing mountains, taking airplanes, diving, and etc.). Ear pressure disequilibrium is related to the eustachian tube which functions to balance air pressure and to drain the middle ear fluid.
Symptoms: Aural fullness and ear pain.
Methods of relief: Chewing, swallowing, and yawning.

7Aging related hearing loss (presbycusis)

Causes: Inner hair cells damage, noise exposure, ototoxic drugs, metabolism, genes, and hormones.
Symptoms: watching the TV with the volume up too loud, frequently asking others to repeat themselves, have trouble listening to phone conversations as well as experiencing difficulties with understanding others in group conversations and in noisy environments.

8Sudden hearing loss

Causes: Inner ear vascular obstruction (sudden sensorineural hearing loss, SSNL), viral infection, and endolymphatic hydrops.
Symptoms: Sudden hearing loss in one ear, accompanied by aural fullness and tinnitus.

9Tinnitus

Causes: Lesions of outer ear, middle ear, inner ear, and vestibulocochlear (hearing) nerve could all cause tinnitus. The incidence rate is 10-15%.
Risk factors: Long-term exposure to noisy environments, age, smoking, and cardiovascular diseases.
Symptoms: These unpleasant noises in the ears are from the ear or brain. They could be low or high pitches.
Methods of relief: Find the right treatment, adjust current lifestyle and diet, as well as avoid drinking alcohol and smoking.

Outer ear

Functions: Collect and amplify sounds.

Auricle (pinna) → Collect sounds and deliver them via the ear canal to amplify the sounds.
The ear canal → A tunnel that creates resonance, amplifies sounds and delivers decent sound energy to the eardrum.

Middle ear

Eardrum (tympanic membrane) → The eardrum picks up the sounds from the ear canal and converts the sounds to vibrate to the ossicles.
Ossicles (malleus, incus, and stapes) → Use the law of the lever to control the amount of energy into the inner ear, and adjust the transmission of sound waves.
Eustachian tube → Connect the middle ear to the nasopharynx and maintains the air pressure between the outer and middle ear. If the eustachian tube is not functioning properly, it could cause aural fullness and infection.

Inner ear

Vestibule → Maintain the body balance. This system has semicircular canals, utricle, saccule, and otoliths (the calcium carbonate crystals that perceive posture changes). They work together to maintain our body balance.
Cochlea → Contains countless hair cells that converts sound energy from the middle ear into neural signal.
Auditory nerve → Transmit the signals to the brain for our human to perceive the sounds.

How much do you know about ear problems?

Have you ever experience or heard of the following problems? Click for more information~

Itchy Ear

Otitis media

Vertigo

Tinnitus

Itchy Ear

Itchy ear is an "Outer ear" problem. Someone gossiping behind you will certainly not cause it! It is caused by either overcleaning (dry itchiness) or over moisturizing (moist itchiness). Other outer ear problems are listed below:

Cerumen: It is the first line of defense of the ear. It prevents the foreign bodies from dropping into your ear and keeps the ear moist. Cerumen will come out by itself, so do not dig it out!
Ear fungus: It is not uncommon to see fungus in the outer ear or on the eardrums. The causes are humid climate, water activities, and weak immune system.
Outer ear infection: It is related to overcleaning. When the outer ear loses its protective layer, it could be easily infected by bacteria. The symptoms of infection are redness, heat, swelling, and pain.

Otitis media

Otitis media is a "Middle ear" problem. The bacterial or viral infections can cause symptoms including aural fullness, ear burning sensation, tinnitus, and fever. Treatments may include antibiotic therapy, and/or ventilation tube insertion. The incidence rate is extremely high among preschool children. It could cause hearing loss at the worst and affect learning at the least. Other middle ear problems are as follow:

Aural fullness: The block in the eustachian tube can cause aural fullness (climbing mountains, taking airplanes, diving, and catching a cold). It can be relieved through swallowing, chewing, and yawning. Otitis media effusion, infection, and inflammation can cause aural fullness as well.
Eardrum perforation: It is usually caused by external force or infection. The symptoms are redness, heat, swelling, and pain. Mild cases may be self repaired. Severe cases will require surgery.

Vertigo

Spinning dizziness and the vertigo accompanied by vomiting are related to "Inner ear" problems. The common causes are listed below:

Meniere’s disease: It is related to endolymphatic hydrops. The common symptoms are episodes of vertigo, nausea and vomiting, low-frequency tinnitus, and hearing loss. The symptoms can be relieved through medication (diuretic), and adjustment of eating habits and lifestyle.
Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, BPPV: The most common cause of BPPV is fallen or dislodged otoliths. It usually lasts for less than one minute. The treatment measure is otolith repositioning (e.g. Epley maneuver).
Vestibular neuritis: It is usually caused by viral infection, such as herpes simplex virus. The acute onset can last from a few days to a couple of weeks.

Tinnitus

What does your tinnitus sound like?

Patients with tinnitus might hear different kinds of noise, such as high-pitched chirping, ringing, buzzing, hissing, or low-pitched rumbling, whooshing, and twanging. The causes are varied. Lesions of external ear, middle ear, inner ear, auditory nerve, or even brain can all lead to tinnitus. A professional audiologist or otologist must be consulted for proper diagnosis.
No cure has yet been found for tinnitus, but there are ways to improve the condition, including wearing hearing devices, receiving sound therapy, taking prescribed medication, receiving psychotherapy. Avoiding stimulants, such as pressure, loud noise, caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol also helps.