This is a term used to generally describe impaired or loss of hearing. It can be caused by a lot of things, depending on the environments the individual is exposed. Its severity depends on the cause and it’s the cause that determines whether it is permanent or temporary. Muffled hearing may in some cases, turn serious; but the good thing is that it can be cured, and if not, there is a lot of assistance one can get so to be able to hear sound properly. People around will always be the first ones to notice that you have muffled hearing; therefore, you will need not ignore them and have a quick medical checkup.
What can cause muffled hearing?
Muffled hearing can be caused by many things. One of them is congenital. This means there was malformation of the anatomical structure of the ear from time of birth. It’s therefore important to know what structure was affected. Normally it’s the inner ear affected especially the eustachian tube. This will make one have problems in hearing.
Another cause that is related to this condition is trauma. The anatomy of the ear may be affected by accidents or trauma that one may be involved in leading to muffled hearing. This should be quickly checked if head injury has occurred to avoid dangers of the hearing loss being permanent.
Infections of the inner ear can also cause hearing loss. The severity of this depends on the organism infecting the ear as well as the quantity of the organism in the ear. This will make some fluids to ooze from the ear leading to hearing problems. Bacteria, viruses, and fungi are known to cause this condition making it common.
Infection by toxoplasma gondii during childbirth can result to this disease. It is therefore important for babies to be checked at maternities to ensure they have no infection of that kind, which could ruin their hearing ability.
Aging is one of the very big causes that make this condition to occur. This involves changes in the middle ear. This is normally permanent, and it can be throughout the lifetime. It is essential to know your ear quality as you are aging. Other causes may be due to accumulation of wax in the ears making conduction of sound difficult. This can also cause muffled hearing. Cleaning of ears using soft apparatus is always beneficial and can assist in preventing this condition.
Diagnosis
Proper medical history should be done to see if there were exposures that could have led to the condition occurring. This should be followed up systematically by a doctor, and ensure the right technique is applied to obtain all information from a patient. Proper history directs the doctor to the next tests that are supposed to be carried out. This normally assists in making the right diagnosis therefore doctors should be careful when taking history.
Patient may be asked to close one ear at a time to listen to sounds. This plays a role in testing for the ability of middle ear if it is infected. Devices like turning fork or an acoustic resonator can always be used so to ensure efficiency in testing. Problems in hearing normally projects out by the person’s inability to recognize some or most sounds. This shall act as a call for further investigation.
An instrument called audiometer can also be used. There are even earphones that can be used to investigate muffled hearing. This plays a role in knowing the degree of hearing loss in a person and the proper treatment therapy to be applied. Magnetic resonance imaging can also be used in studying the structures affected.
Treatment
Using steam makes the obstacles blocking the ear to loosen and give way. It’s helpful because even some micro organisms can even die if they are weak giving relief to the ear. This is supposed to be done regularly so as to remove as much dirty as possible. Staying in a steam room for one hour can be of great help since this will better the situation with time and make you feel okay. A facial sauna machine can play a very nice role too.
Anti inflammatory drugs like predinisoline and citerizine can be of great help. They help reduce pain as well as fluid accumulation. Antibiotics can also be administered as well as antiviral, all depending on the cause of the problem. These are stimulants and will enhance any tinnitus that you have.
The temptation may be to drink but it is not productive. If you have access to herbal plants that can treat, it could also help. Taking honey and drinking a lot of fluids can assist in decongesting the ears. Remember, an elevated amount of salt in your diet can promote this condition and has been linked with abnormal sounds in the ear.
