Litchfield Hills Today

• Eustachian tubes are connected to the sinuses.
• Symptoms of eustachian tube dysfunction (ETD) include pain, hearing difficulties and a feeling of fullness in the ears.
• Treatment options for ETD include antihistamines, decongestants and balloon dilation.

According to Healthline, eustachian tubes are small tubes that run between the middle ears and the upper throat. They are responsible for equalizing ear pressure and draining fluid from the middle ear, the part of the ear behind the eardrum. The eustachian tubes are usually closed except during chewing, swallowing or yawning.

"People may not have realized it's the eustachian tube that's in play, but whenever you fly or scuba-dive, or if the weather changes, the barometric pressure changes, you can get that clogged sensation in your ear," Dr. Robert Weiss at CT ENT Sinus Center told Litchfield Hills Today. "You feel like you have to pop your ear. Some people actually can't hear very well while it's happening. There's a tube connecting the airspace behind your eardrum to the back of the nose. What's supposed to happen? The outside air pressure is supposed to equalize with the air pressure behind your eardrum every second or microsecond, and you do that by just talking, swallowing, breathing. That little tube connecting the ear to the nose opens and allows pressure to do its thing. That's why your ear gets clogged if you're flying."

The eustachian tube passageways are small in size and can get plugged for a variety of reasons. Blocked eustachian tubes can cause pain, hearing difficulties and a feeling of fullness in the ears. Such a phenomenon is referred to as eustachian tube dysfunction. ETD is a relatively common condition. Depending on the cause, it may resolve on its own or through simple at-home treatment measures, such as chewing gum, yawning or using a saline nasal spray. Severe or recurring cases may require a visit to the doctor.

"Some people are just born with an eustachian tube that doesn't work very well, and many of those people, as kids, tend to get a lot of ear infections even into adulthood," Weiss said. "Also, folks with sinus, allergy problems. Anything that will cause swelling and inflammation inside your nose and sinuses will affect your eustachian tube. So many of our patients come in with the typical allergy symptoms and sinus symptoms, but they also complain of a lot of ear symptoms, clogging fullness and hearing loss. We address that, along with all the other things. I mentioned the balloon sinus dilation for sinuses, but we can use the same balloon in the eustachian tube. It's a little different technique, but we tend to do it simultaneously. When we fix their eustachian tube, it's made quite a difference."

One possible treatment for ETD is balloon dilation, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. This procedure is minimally invasive and relatively new, having been approved by the FDA in 2005. A study of 126 children who underwent balloon dilation to treat ETD found that there were no reported complications, and symptoms improved in 80% of patients.

Readers experiencing sinus issues are invited to visit CT ENT Sinus Center.