The glass on the right side of the cockpit suddenly unexpectedly burst, and the cabin air pressure suddenly changed, causing many passengers dizziness and earache and other discomfort. Although this kind of sudden crisis event is very occasional, but many people fly ear stuffy and ear pain discomfort is very common. Why does this happen? Is there any way to alleviate this discomfort?

Will ear pain ear distension, the key to look at the eustachian tube adjustment function

People who have flown more or less have such feelings, sometimes there will be ear swelling, feeling as if separated by a layer of things, can not hear the outside sound, and even ear pain, especially when the plane takes off and lands is particularly obvious, sometimes swallow saliva, yawn or eat something good, sometimes it may last a long time, and even after the plane has this feeling.

The key here is to see if your "eustachian tube" is working.

Experts introduced that the normal ear is divided into the outer ear, the middle ear and the inner ear three parts, the outer ear and the middle ear separated by the tympanic membrane, that is, when the tympanic membrane is complete, as a protective barrier, external objects (whether water, foreign bodies or gas, etc.) will not enter the middle ear to protect the middle ear and the inner ear to form a relatively clean environment.

But the normal mucous membrane of the middle ear sometimes produces some mucus, how to exclude?

As a gas chamber, the gas content of the middle ear is always changing, how to adjust the gas of the middle ear and the resulting pressure change?

These are closely related to the tubule, a small tube that connects the middle ear to the back of the nasal cavity (nasopharynx).

In most cases, the eustachian tube is closed to ensure the relative stability of the middle ear environment.

When swallowing, yawning, sneezing, or certain articulatory movements, the wall of the tube is pulled by the movement of the surrounding muscles, which causes the tube to open briefly, thus regulating the pressure on the middle ear cavity to balance it with the outside world.

People who catch cold and suffer from rhinitis for a long time are prone to "aviation otitis media"

In the process of taking off, the external air pressure is rapidly reduced, while the middle ear cavity still maintains normal pressure (relatively higher than the outside world), so that the eardrum is swollen outward, the pressure is increased, and then the passengers will have a sense of ear swelling.

When the pressure difference reaches a certain value, it will stimulate the pressure receptors in the middle ear, induce swallowing and other actions, and lead to the opening of the eustachian tube through muscle pulling, so as to discharge the excess gas and maintain the balance of middle ear pressure.

The opposite is true of ear pressure during landing.

If the eustachian tube function is reduced due to some factors, such as cold, long-term nasal diseases such as rhinitis and sinusitis, or infants and other cases of incomplete eustachian tube function, the eustachian tube and its surrounding mucosa will swell, resulting in stenosis of the tube, affecting its opening, and gas cannot enter and leave the middle ear in time to adjust the pressure, which will be manifested as persistent ear dulling and hearing loss. Even due to the large pressure difference on both sides of the eardrum leading to ear pain, persistent negative pressure in the middle ear can also cause fluid accumulation in the middle ear, which is called "aviation otitis media."

prevent

Learn these tricks when you take off and land

How to reduce the discomfort of flying?

Swallowing, chewing and yawning will open the eustachian tube, and doing these movements intentionally during takeoff and landing can effectively regulate the pressure in the middle ear cavity. Some airplanes specially prepare chewing gum and other candy for passengers, through chewing and swallowing actions, can also promote the opening of the pharyngotympanic tube.

You can also try the pinch nose blowing method: pinch the nose, close the mouth to blow the nose, if you feel like there are two doors open on both sides of the ears, it means that the eustachan tube is open, and sometimes you need to do more times to be effective.

But there are two points to pay special attention to: first, patients with a cold do not do, otherwise the bacteria or nasal secretions will also blow into the middle ear, inducing otitis media; Second, do not exert too much force, otherwise too much middle ear pressure may cause tympanic membrane damage, must be gentle and moderate; Third, for the eustacia tube function is not fully developed, and can not accurately describe the ear discomfort of infants and young children, parents should pay attention to not let the baby sleep during the plane takeoff and landing, it is best to feed them some milk or water, so that they swallow milk at the same time can also open the eustacia tube, to adjust the air pressure in the middle ear cavity.

warn

If you have a severe cold, stuffy nose or tears, it is best not to fly

Experts remind that passengers with severe colds, nasal congestion and runny nose are best to change to other means of transportation, so as not to cause secretory otitis media due to poor functioning of the eustachan tube on the plane.

If this cannot be avoided, try to use medication (such as topical hormone or decongestant and other nasal drops) to reduce the mucosal edema of the nasal cavity and eustatic tube, and reduce the incidence of otitis media.

If you still have a persistent feeling of ear swelling or hearing loss after getting off the plane, you should go to the ENT department of the hospital in time for diagnosis and treatment.