sound when moving ear

[guzmano]

About two weeks ago I started hearing a "crumpling paper" sound inside my ear right whenever I move the ear with the ear muscle or when i pull it upwards manually or when I move the lower jaw from side to side.

There is no water in my ear, no infection and no wax build up (I just came back from my family doctor) and my hearing is not impaired and I have no pain. I have not had any cold for the past few months and I have not injured myself in that ear or anything like that. This just started out of the blue.

Why am I hearing this sound as if I have water and why is it not going away after two weeks?
Is this a sign of a lesion in the cochlea or ear drum that my family doctor has not been able to detect?
What are the internal ear conditions, diseases or lesions that could be consistent with these symptoms?

Thank you

[durazcoton]

Just wanted to chime in, as this happened to me and I was able to get to the bottom of it relatively quickly.

I was hearing the crackling noise in my left ear for about 3 days, figuring it was due to a cold I just got over.

I have very dry skin in my ears and do not produce enough wax, so every week I put sweet oil in and spread it through the very outer part of the canal with a cotton swab. Sure enough, this time when I pulled out the cotton swab from my left ear, a 3cm-long hair came out, and the crinkling noise was gone. I would say the ear-wiggling technique likely works for people due to either temporarily or permanently dislodging whatever foreign object is rubbing against the ear drum, as it also worked for me for a bit.

[abailey1023]

I poured peroxide into my ear for about 2 minutes and let it bubble. Then I dried my ear with a Qtip. The noise was gone the next day and hasn't returned.

[serafinadellarosa]

Just tried the head tilt and finger wiggle and it worked. Amazing! I noticed the cracking and crunching sounds the other day and have been looking for clue. Read your suggestion and now it's gone.

[Megalev]

Haha, astonishingly insightful comment :)

[ohaira]

well i will have to say, it worked for me as well. had the crinkling sound for awhile went away but had recently came back. did sleekgeeks suggestion..to my surprise..gone!! for how long, that will be the test :)
Thanks again.

[AS308]

I'm 17 and I have the same crackling sound in the right ear. My hearing is also what I can best describe as foggy, and it's giving me headaches. Sometimes I get dizzy too. I don't have any hobbies or jobs that require pressure change. The only activity I do that I can imagine having a negative impact on my ear is listening to loud live music. I clean my ears daily so I know it's not wax build up. I am going to see my doctor ASAP but she is on vacation at the moment.