04 Ear Diseases
04 00 Acoustic Trauma
04 01 Acute Mastoiditis
04 02 Barotrauma
04 03 Ear Congestion
04 04 Ear Infections
04 05 Labyrinthitis
04 06 Serous Otitis Media
04 10 Tinnitus
04 11 Vestibular Neuritis
The ear is made up of three parts. The outer ear includes the part you can see and the canal that leads to the eardrum. The eardrum separates the middle ear from the outer ear and contains tiny bones that amplify sound. The inner ear is where sounds are translated into electrical impulses and sent to the brain. Bacteria, fungi, or viruses can infect any of these three parts. Children are particularly prone to middle ear infections (otitis media). Around four of five children (80%) are estimated to have experienced a middle ear infection at least once.
Scroll down the site to find your disease or condition. Then, you look for the treatment color. The treatment colors are magenta (red-blue), blue, cyan (blue-green), green, yellow (red-green), and red. I give the treatment colors a number. Magenta = 0, blue = 1, cyan = 2, green = 3, yellow = 4, and red = 5. Acoustic Trauma would then be categorized as 04-00-1. Here, the last digit, the treatment color, is blue. The first two digits are the disease/condition group (Ear Diseases are 04). The next two digits (Acoustic Trauma is 00) are the illness within the group, and the last digit (blue is 1) is the treatment color.
When you use the projector, click on your treatment color, and a large image of it will appear. Make the color cover the whole page and project it onto yourself. When you use the LED light bulb, you choose your color manually.
Acoustic trauma is an injury to the hearing mechanisms in the inner ear caused by thunderous noise.
Acoustic trauma is a common cause of sensory hearing loss. Damage to the hearing mechanisms within the inner ear may be caused by an explosion near the ear, firing a gun near the ear, long-term exposure to loud noises (such as loud music or machinery), and any deafening noise near the ear.
Mastoiditis is most often caused by a middle ear infection (acute otitis media). The disease may spread from the ear to the mastoid bone. The bone has a honeycomb-like structure that fills with infected material and may break down. The condition is most common in children.
Barotrauma is an injury caused by increased air pressure, such as during airplane flights or scuba diving. Barotrauma can cause ear pain or damage to the eardrum.
The eardrum separates the ear canal and the middle ear. If the air pressure in the ear canal from the outside air and air pressure in the middle ear change rapidly or are unequal, it can damage the eardrum. Usually, the eustachian tube, which connects the middle ear and the back of the nose, helps maintain equal pressure on both sides of the eardrum by allowing outside air to enter the middle ear. However, when the outside air pressure changes suddenly—for example, during the ascent or descent of an airplane or a deep-sea dive—air must move through the eustachian tube to equalize the pressure in the middle ear.
Ear congestion refers to a feeling of fullness in the ears. A person may feel that their ears are clogged or blocked up. It can also lead to hearing difficulties, dizziness, and ear pain.
Ear infections are among the most common reasons parents take their children to the health care provider. The most common type of ear infection is called otitis media. It is caused by swelling and infection of the middle ear. The middle ear is located just behind the eardrum.
An acute ear infection is painful and starts quickly. Ear infections that last a long time or come and go are called chronic ear infections.
A chronic ear infection is fluid, swelling, or an infection behind the eardrum that does not go away or keeps coming back. It can cause long-term or permanent damage to the ear and often involves a hole in the eardrum that does not heal.
Common signs and symptoms include ear pain, fluid drainage from the ear, and trouble hearing.
Labyrinthitis is inflammation of the labyrinth, part of the inner ear. The eighth cranial nerve (vestibulocochlear nerve) may also be inflamed. This inflammation causes a feeling of spinning (vertigo), hearing loss, and other symptoms. In most people, these symptoms go away over time.
Serous otitis media is an effusion in the middle ear resulting from incomplete resolution of acute otitis media or obstruction of the eustachian tube without infection.
Symptoms include hearing loss and a sense of fullness or pressure in the ear. Diagnosis is based on the appearance of the tympanic membrane and sometimes on tympanometry.
Most cases resolve in two to three weeks.
Tinnitus is when you experience ringing or other noises in one or both of your ears. An external sound doesn’t cause the noise you hear when you have tinnitus; other people usually can’t hear it. However, tinnitus is a common problem. It affects 15% to 20% of people and is especially common in older adults.
An underlying condition, such as age-related hearing loss, an ear injury, or a problem with the circulatory system, usually causes tinnitus.
Vestibular Neuritis affects the vestibular system and is caused by inflammation of the inner ear nerves. These nerves send signals to the brain that control balance.
It is frequently caused by a virus, an infection that may occur in the respiratory or gastrointestinal system. The virus causes inflammation of the vestibular nerve, which disturbs the transmission of information collected by the nerve. Again, this results in inconsistency with the rest of the body’s receptors, such as vision, leading to an altered sense of balance.