While it heals, the following tips can help you relieve your symptoms and reduce the chances of your ear becoming infected:. If you have an ear infection caused by a perforated eardrum, a GP may prescribe antibiotics. If the hole in your eardrum is big, or does not heal in a few weeks, the GP may refer you to an ear specialist to talk about having surgery to repair a perforated eardrum.
Find out more about flying if you have a perforated eardrum. Page last reviewed: 11 February Next review due: 11 February Exams and Tests The health care provider will look in your ear with an instrument called an otoscope. Treatment You can take steps at home to treat ear pain. Put warm compresses on the ear to help relieve discomfort. Use medicines such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen to ease pain. Keep the ear clean and dry while it is healing.
Place cotton balls in the ear while showering or shampooing to prevent water from entering the ear. Avoid swimming or putting your head underneath the water. Your provider may prescribe antibiotics oral or ear drops to prevent or treat an infection.
Patch the eardrum with a piece of the person's own tissue taken called tympanoplasty. This procedure will usually take 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Repair smaller holes in the eardrum by placing either gel or a special paper over the eardrum called myringoplasty. This procedure will usually take 10 to 30 minutes. Outlook Prognosis The opening in the eardrum most often heals by itself within 2 months if it is a small hole.
Hearing loss will be short-term if the rupture heals completely. Direct trauma to the pinna and outer ear canal. A slap on the ear with an open hand or other things that put pressure on the ear can tear the eardrum.
Ear infections. An infection of the middle ear or inner ear can cause pus or fluid buildup behind the eardrum. This can make the eardrum burst open. The typical first sign of a perforated eardrum is pain. A child might have: mild to severe pain that may get worse for a time before suddenly decreasing drainage from the ear that can be clear, pus-filled, or bloody hearing loss ringing or buzzing in the ear tinnitus dizziness or vertigo a feeling that the room is spinning rarely, weak facial muscles Call the doctor right away if your child has any symptoms of a perforated eardrum.
Go to the emergency room right away if your child has: bloody discharge from the ear extreme pain total hearing loss in one ear dizziness that causes vomiting How Is a Perforated Eardrum Diagnosed? The doctor also might: order an audiology exam to measure how well the child hears at different pitches and volumes order a tympanometry to measure the response of the eardrum to slight changes in air pressure send a sample of fluid draining from the ear to a lab to check for infection How Is a Perforated Eardrum Treated?
What Else Should I Know? While recovering from a perforated eardrum, kids should: Never use over-the-counter ear drops unless the doctor says to.
With a hole in the eardrum, some kinds of ear drops can get into the middle ear or cochlea and cause problems. Try to keep the ear canal dry. The doctor might recommend keeping the ear dry to prevent infection. Gently place a waterproof earplug or cotton ball coated with petroleum jelly in the ear when your child showers or takes a bath. Take care when blowing their nose.
Doing so with force can cause pain and more injury to the eardrum. Even though most perforations heal on their own, you want to take steps to make sure any hearing loss you experience is only temporary.
Go to the emergency room right away if you have severe symptoms. Examples of severe symptoms are bloody discharge from your ear, extreme pain, total hearing loss in one ear, or dizziness that causes vomiting.
To check for a perforated eardrum, a doctor will most likely examine your ear canal with a lighted instrument called an otoscope. Often, a doctor can see the tear and may even be able to see the tiny bones of the middle ear. Other times it can be hard to see the eardrum at all because of fluid draining from the ear.
A doctor might order additional tests. Some of these are to check the eardrum for a rupture, others help doctors learn more about hearing loss. The doctor may want you to get an audiology exam to measure how well you hear at different pitches and volumes.
If there is fluid coming from the ear, a sample of the fluid might be tested in a lab. This can help doctors decide which antibiotic is best for treating the infection. Usually, a perforated eardrum will heal on its own within a few weeks without any treatment. While the eardrum is healing, over-the-counter pain relievers can help ease any pain.
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