EARS

We provide a comprehensive range of services for diagnosing and treating symptoms involving the external or internal ear.  If you are having difficulty hearing, ear pain, ringing, dizziness, or physical changes to your ear(s), then we can help!

Difficulty hearing may be caused by a great number of factors that is not just limited to age.  Ear infections, common in young children, can be a source of hearing trouble and may lead to chronic hearing impairment and even delays in speech and language development.  Ear trauma, from exposure to extreme loud noises or from foreign objects being inserted into the ear canal, such as cotton swabs, can rupture eardrums.  The normal aging process can affect hearing, and something as simple as hardened ear wax or sinus congestion can all be culprits of decreased hearing.

Dr. Brill can provide various treatments for reversable hearing loss, and will gladly provide a referral for custom hearing aids for hearing loss due to aging or chronic noise exposure.

Oftentimes we notice that we are asking for people to repeat themselves, or seem to have a delay in processing what we hear.  We may feel that our ear canal is blocked, that water gets stuck, or just have a sensation that something is blocking our ear canal and needs to come out.  Typically these symptoms mean that there is an impaction of cerumen, known as ear wax,  that has hardened or has otherwise become lodged in the ear canal. This can happen as a result of using facial swabs, or q-tips, inappropriately which pushes the wax further into the ear canal.  Wax production and wax hardening also are found as we advance in age.  

Q-TIPS SHOULD NEVER BE INSERTED INTO THE EAR CANAL!

Home remedies such as flushing the ear with water while in the shower or using an over-the-counter ear wax softening agent, such as Debrox drops will loosen and naturally flush the excess wax buildup, but at times the wax is deep enough or impacted enough that these remedies will not be effective in removing the wax. 

If the impaction is severe enough even your primary care physician will refer you to an ear specialist for removal. Dr. Brill will use an otoscope or may have to use a more powerful microscope to visualize further in the ear. The cerumen may be softened with a softening agent, and will be removed using a curette, suction, or specially shaped forceps. 

This procedure is performed in the office with minimal to no discomfort, and patients typically experience immediate relief of pressure and immediate restoration of hearing upon removal.

There are many things that can cause a painful or uncomfortable sensation in the ears.  Pain is typically seen in younger patients with ear infections due to the size and shape of the eustachian tube, but adults certainly suffer from Otitis (Ear Infection) as well!  The infections are usually caused by a foreign contaminant, such as common bacteria, and can many times be successfully treated with antibiotics.  If the infection cannot be resolved with antibiotics or is recurring, then a simple procedure, tympanostomy, can be performed in the office in many cases to insert a drainage tube into the ear drum.  

Ear pain can be caused by a foreign object causing trauma or remaining in the ear canal.  Cotton swabs are typical culprits of ear canal trauma, but other foreign objects and debris can easily enter and lodge in the ear canal, are regularly removed in the office.  

Although most of us experience ringing in the ears at some point or at various times in our lives, such as after exposure to loud noises, the constant ringing, buzzing, or humming sound that some people experience with chronic tinnitus can be maddening.  It can interfere with normal hearing, delayed interpretation, and increased anxiety.  There can be numerous causes of tinnitus ranging from loud noise damaging the cilia in the ear, to high blood pressure, to nerve damage.  Although there is no cure for chronic tinnitus at this time, identifying the cause is key to determining treatment options that may decrease the sometimes debilitating and consuming  annoyance and irritation experienced by those with the condition

The external ear consists of the part of the ear that is visible.  Skin lesions and cancer, keloids, torn ear lobes,  cartilage irregularities, infections from piercings, cauliflower ear, hematoma, and other injury can not only affect the appearance of the ear(s), but can also be physically painful.  Treatments for physical deformities and trauma are treatable.  As head of the Facial Trauma department at Prisma Health (formerly Palmetto Health) for many years, Dr. Brill has provided treatment and performed reconstructive procedures of the ears due to trauma from vehicle accidents, injury from torn ear lobes, corrected protruding ears and removed keloids and scar tissue, and removed cancer and reconstructed entire external ear structures for some patients.  

Hematomas of the ear, also know as Cauliflower ear or Boxer's ear, is a collection of blood resulting from the separation of the skin from the cartilage of the ear.  This is usually a result of a  blow or direct trauma to the ear.  Treatment for this condition should be sought out immediately for treatment of the hematoma to reduce the chance of infection, tissue death, decreased hearing, and/or permanent disfigurement, which can begin within hours of the trauma.  The hematoma should be drained, and sutures may be required in an attempt to reattach the skin to the cartilage.  For those with a history of auricular hematoma, a surgical procedure known as an otoplasty can be performed to reshape the cartilage, remove excess fluid and skin, and restore a more symmetrical appearance.  For those who participate in contact sports, there is an increased likelihood of recurrence, especially for those who participate in sports with a higher incidence of blunt force trauma to the head such as boxing, wrestling, and martial arts.  

Children will often insert small toys into the ear canal that will be come lodged, but adults experience just as many instances of foreign bodies lodged in their ears as well.  Adults often present with cotton from facial swabs (Q-Tips), small pieces from hearing aids, and even bugs or insects!  Please do not try to remove any item that has become lodged in the ear canal.  The foreign objects are not only bothersome, painful, and affect hearing, but attempted removal at home could cause injury to the ear canal and even to the ear drum and structures if inadvertently impacted further.   

Many reconstructive treatments of the ear are covered by insurance to restore torn tissue or remove hematoma, cyst, abscess, or excess scar tissue.