Severe inner ear pain that come and goes and dime sized lump just below lobe

[Crystalbigger]

About 2 years ago i noticed both ears felt verry full. I let it go for almost 3 weeks untill i could not stand it anymore. During this time i also had severe neck pain and swelling to the point i for the first time went to a chiropractor. He said my c2 was out and everytime he fixed it the swelling caused it to go back out not a week later. I went to the er and they did a cat scan and said I had bi lateral mastoiditis. They gave me a massive amount on oral antibiotics that i took for about 4 months. when i stopped it came back and so again for 3 months i took antibiotics.. I saw 2 different ents and both looked at my cat scan and said i never had bi lateral mastoiditis and the cat scan does not note it anywhere. They did lots of tests and found nothing. They secound time i ended my antibiotics i thought i was fine. Now i can go 2 or 3 days with no pain but sure enough the ear paint comes back (only left side) and i have a lump on the left side just below my ear lobe that does not hurt but is not on the right side and i did not have it before. If i push on it it feels like my sinuses in the back of my nose/neck draine a little into my throut. My ear will hurt so bad i cant touch it or mess with the position of it in anyway. Moving my head makes it hurt aswell. It is made worse by heat or stress iv noticed. The neck pain follows but not to the point it did. When the ear pain returns its an all day event. What could it be? A few months before this all started i did have a very bad sinus infection that was treated. Also iv noticed at random times my nose will suddenly run alot with no warning. Its not like a drippy nose its like somone running and always clear like water.

[Lauren de Moreno, MD]

You might have Eustachian tube dysfunction which a problem with the tube that drains the middle ear of fluid to the back of the nose.  Any swelling of the noses and sinuses can cause the Eustachian tube to swell with resulting ear fluid and problems.  Mastoiditis is not something that can be diagnosed with a CT scan as the radiologist can only tell if fluid is present and not if it is infected or not.  That is why it is important for an evaluation with an ENT.  You might need myringotomy tubes (ear tubes) to help with the fullness and pain.

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

Looks like you have developed a sinus infection which has  progressed to a throat infection as well. Sinus infections cause headaches. There are tubes called 'Eustachian  tubes' which connect the middle ear to the throat, this balances the air pressure in the ears. This tube can get  blocked due to infections of the throat, which can give lead to a feeling of fullness in the ears and the pain. This can also result in infection of the ears. Consult your primary care physician who will do blood tests and take a throat swab to determine the cause and prescribe appropriate medications. The blocked ears can be opened up by the valsalva maneuver, where air is blown into the cheeks against a closed nostrils, this sometimes helps to open up the tubes. Steam inhalations and salt water gargles can help. Take (OTC) tylenol (acetaminophen) or ibuprofen for pain.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.

[Crystalbigger]

Sorry its like somone running water