What disease causes unilateral ear congestion?

The feeling of stuffiness in one ear may be caused by external stimuli. This is also a common symptom in clinical practice and can be seen in many ear diseases. The symptoms of stuffy ears are quite obvious. If it is not treated in time for a long time, it will cause serious damage to people's hearing. Therefore, it is important to understand the cause during treatment. So what disease causes the stuffy feeling in one ear?

1. External ear lesions

Any pathological changes that can cause blockage of the external auditory canal can produce a feeling of stuffiness in the ears, such as ① earwax blockage, especially when earwax completely blocks the external auditory canal; ② furuncle in the external auditory canal, when the furuncle is large, it can block the external auditory canal; ③ foreign body in the external auditory canal, children like to stuff erasers, mung beans, plastic beads, etc. into the external auditory canal when playing, and adults often have insects flying into the external auditory canal in summer; ④ common external auditory canal tumors, such as external auditory canal papilloma.

2. Middle ear lesions

The main cause of ear congestion is Eustachian tube disease. If you have a cold, rhinitis, nasal polyps or other diseases, the mucous membrane of the opening of the Eustachian tube on the nasal side will swell and the Eustachian tube will not be able to open. The tympanic cavity will become an airtight cavity. Over time, the air inside will be absorbed by the mucous membrane, and the tympanic cavity will become a negative pressure, which will cause ear stuffiness. Common lesions that cause Eustachian tube dysfunction include: ① Acute rhinitis: that is, the common cold, in which the nasal mucosa becomes congested and swollen, causing the pharyngeal opening of the Eustachian tube to be narrowed; ② Chronic rhinitis, allergic rhinitis and nasal polyps, severe nasal septum deviation, etc. can also cause stenosis and blockage of the pharyngeal opening of the Eustachian tube; ③ Adenoids hypertrophy Adenoids are lymphoid tissue located in the nasopharynx. They are often larger in children and gradually shrink with age. Sometimes excessive hypertrophy of the adenoids can block the opening of the Eustachian tube; ④ Congenital cleft palate deformity Cleft palate patients have difficulty opening the pharyngeal opening of the Eustachian tube due to abnormal function of the levator veli palatine and tensor veli palatine muscles; ⑤ Nasopharyngeal tumors Benign nasopharyngeal tumors are mainly nasopharyngeal angiofibroma, and malignant tumors are mainly nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

3. Inner ear diseases

It is mainly caused by membranous labyrinth lesions. The most important inner ear lesion that causes ear stuffiness is Meniere's disease. The main symptoms of the disease are ear stuffiness, tinnitus, paroxysmal vertigo and fluctuating hearing loss.