Ear pressure that comes and goes and feeling of fullness

Ears, nose and throat
1

Hi,

For the last month I have been experiencing what started as a feeling of “pulses” in my ear. Sort of like when you hear your heart punding only its not the heart (its a very quick and disordered feeling which is unrelated to the pulse).
After seeing a physician he said its an ear infection and gave me antibiotic drops. after finishing the treatment and going back to another physician, I was sent to an ENT doctor that gave me steroids. after these also didnt help, I went to an ENT specialist (who is a throat expert but agreed to see me anyway).
By that point, the feeling of fullness in my ear was worse, and now any time I do any activity that involves pressure on the throat (swallowing, burping, yawning etc) I can really feel pressure in my ear along with hearing a “popping” sound, something like bubbles in my ear.
So, the ENT said something very weird after looking in my ear - he said there’s nothing wrong with it and that it’s a form of Tinnitus.
This sounds off to me - I know about Tinnitus, and the symptoms I have can be triggered by flexing my jaw or swallowing. its sounds nothing like the Tinnitus I know about.
Does anyone here have any insights? should I be satisfied by his analysis or should I search for another doctor?

Thank you :slight_smile:

2

Hi i know how awful it is dr sent me to Ent, which was useless, im still no good with all the meds, and no tests done either. Hope you get it sorted out, and me too!

3

Hi,

I had the pulsing tinnitus after my grommet operation. It was constant for a month but now comes and goes. It might be due to some tremor to your ears. I had the op due to being diagnosed with ETD Eustachian Tuber Dysfunction. I started with the popping, crackling of the ears when I was 10 (now 28 years old) and thought nothing of it until I started suffering with ear pain, dizzying, off balance, pressure, fullness of ears nearly 2 years now. Research Eustachian Tuber Dysfunction and see if this helps.

Fast forward: I had my op in February and had a follow up in July. My ear pain and the popping/crackling didn’t go away so now the ENT specialist is saying its not ETD! I am now getting a 2nd opinion.

Be persistent with the doctors don’t let them fob you off with ‘take these painkillers and come back in a few weeks/months’ you know your body better than anyone! Definitely push for a 2nd opinion.

Hope this helps!