perforated eardrums

A ruptured eardrum (tympanic membrane perforation) is a hole or tear in the thin tissue that separates your ear canal from your middle ear space.

This may be caused by loud sounds, a foreign object in the ear, head trauma, a middle ear infection or rapid pressure changes, such as from air travel, diving or sky diving.

Signs that you’ve perforated your eardrum

• A sharp pain in the affected ear that subsides quickly. If the pain is due to infection you will usually notice a blood stained discharge once the eardrum burst with significant relief in pain

• Discharge from the ear

• Ringing in the ear (tinnitus)

• Blocked feeling in the ear and/or hearing loss which is usually temporary and will resolve as the eardrum heals

• Feeling or sound of air coming out of the ear when blowing your nose

What to do if your eardrum has perforated

It is best to see a doctor or ear nurse as soon as possible. If it was caused by an accident or injury you will need to complete an ACC form.

Your ear canal may need to be cleaned, microsuctioning is safe and comfortable and the recommended way.

You may not need antibiotics or ear drops, it depends on how it happened. If there is infection or a high risk of infection (like diving into a river or lake) then you may require antibiotics and/or ear drops.

It will be very important to keep the affected ear dry to prevent water from entering the middle ear space and causing further irritation and or infection.

Followup visits are important until the perforation has healed. This may take anything from a few days to a few months. Usually if the eardrum has not healed itself after 3 months it may not do so at all and will be referred to as a chronic perforation. This may need referral to an ear nose and throat specialist.

You may also need to undergo a hearing test to determine if there is any permanent damage to your hearing, more so when it was caused by a loud noise or injury.