Sensation of fullness/pressure in ear.

[mur111]

I have been struggling with an ear issue for a while now. The main symptom is a sensation of fullness/pressure in both ears which frustrates me and causes me to regularly be trying to find relief by moving my jaw, performing the valsalva maneuver etc.

I first mentioned this to my doctor almost 4 months ago. He looked in my ears to confirm there was no wax build up and noticed that there was signs of fluid in my middle ear. He figured it was from dryness and/or allergies and got me to start saline nasal rinses and I have been doing them daily for the last 4 months now (twice daily at first). This helped especially with breathing through my nose, something that I hadn't realized was as bad as it was(to me a sign that this is something that has been bothering me for quite a while now).

About a month ago I commented on how there was slight improvement(and big improvement with the nose/breathing) but that it was still bothering me. The doctor prescribed me nasonex for 2 weeks(he said not to use it longer then that), I used it a bit more then the 2 weeks and again believe I saw minor improvement but the ear issue was still present.

I asked the doctor about seeing an ENT but he said I would have to visit an audiologist first. He looked in my ears and said they look healthy now. I saw the audiologist a week ago who did a hearing test and tympanometry test. Both had good results, they said there was slight negative pressure in the ears but within normal range. They also looked in my ears and said they looked fine and could only see signs of a couple minor droplets of fluid. They did say I should try a decongestant and antihistamine to see if that helped. I have never taking allergy medication before since I didn't think I had allergies(at least not significantly) but was starting to question if this was an adult onset allergy(since allergies run rampant in the family). I mentioned it to my doctor but he didn't want to do allergy tests... I tried a decongestant(Otrivin) which did help me breath better but didn't make feeling in ear go away. I also started taking Claritin which I am not sure is having much effect. My doctor is away so I saw someone covering for him and they gave me Singulair to try as well so now I am currently doing the nasal rinses in morning and taking Claritin and Singulair. I have also tried cleaning the house better and avoiding dust(would be only allergy I can think of that would cause this). I was thinking I might be feeling a bit better but I still do have the ear issue. I believe it has improved over the 4 months of treatment but it is still present enough to be frustrating and I am running out of ideas on what would cause this and how to try and treat it.

I don't believe it is pressure since the valsalva maneuver etc moves air in and out of my ear and this does not relieve the symptom. If it is pressure it would have to be in something other then my middle ear? When I move my jaw to try and create relief it makes squishy/crackling noises in my ear. Could it just be some sort of residue or inflammation still present?

If anyone has ideas as to what may be causing this sensation and what I should be asking the doctor to do about it or anything else to try and help diagnose it I would appreciate the help.

[Spes1]

Hi, i had same issue and was diagnosed with Meniere. What worked for me:
-melatonin (remfresh) to sleep
-very low sodium diet (1500 mg)
-food allergy test indicated i am allergic to some foods which i stopped taking (Menieres disease may be triggered by allergies)
- gingko biloba and alpha lipoic acid supplements for tinnitus
-take natural diuretics (eg dandelion tea)
-drink two liters of water a day
-cut out caffeine
- low sugar and low carb diet (150 g or less of carbs per day)- some research shows link between glucose level and menieres disease
I know what you are going through. I feel a lot better after a few very tough months. Best of luck!