Ear trauma

[Mary95max]

I was playing softball with my family when the ball hit me directly in the left ear. There was ringing for a few seconds and then severe pain. Since then I have had some hearing loss and still pain. There has been no blood drainage at all. Do I possibly have a ruptered ear drum? Should I seek medical treatment or will it heal on it's own?

[Wear/a/Jimmy]

Yes, & Yes & maybe.

The severity of the damage can not be determined unless you seek medical assistance.

The evaluation would be painless. If money is an issue, you can go see an audiologist and they can at least visualize your ear and see if there has been a perforation. They can also do some testing and see if there has been damage to the middle ear & the inner ear. It would theoritically save you some money.

As far as treatment goes, that would be in the hands of an ENT. Depending on some other things, you may be concerned about skull fracture etc.

If it were me, I would not pinch penneys, I'd go see a ENT with an audiologist on staff.

[Eric P Wilkinson, MD]

Hi Mary, it is possible that the trauma resulted in a traumatic eardrum perforation.  You should seek the assistance of an ENT physician who will examine the ear with a microscope and then perform an audiogram.  

Hope this helps.  Good luck!

[Wear/a/Jimmy]

I have yet to see an ENT perform an audiogram.