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Eustachian Tube Dysfunction: tube is plugged
Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) | Last Active: Aug 15 10:56am | Replies (59)Comment receiving replies
Well, tubes in ears at our age is unusual, but not unheard-of. At one point in the 1980's our ENT was caring for my 2 daughters, me, a few nieces and nephews, my Dad & his brother. We ALL - ages 15 months to over 80 years - had eustachian tube dysfunction & chronic ear infections - and all had tubes inserted in our ear drums. He considered us an interesting multi-generational case study in "bad ears".
Insertion is a 5 minute, in-office procedure, but not the first effort to deal with "plugged ears" or pain.
You mentioned stringy mucus from your nasal cavity on the same side as the worst symptoms, so you may have a chronic low-level infection or inflammation in your sinus as part of the equation - be sure to share this info with your ENT - sometimes a mucus thinning medication can help. Do be sure he has your complete medical history as well, since things that seem unrelated to you and me can definitely influence each other in our bodies.
Good luck in solving your ear issues - even though it seems "small" it has a tremendous impact on quality of life.
Sue
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@sueinmn Thankyou It's almost embarrassing when we have so many overlapping medical issues and have to go on and on abut them....especially not life-threatening necessarily but life-altering. I have a dry left nasal passage but the mucus in right side, for many years, could not blow out but sort of sniffed to back of throat... but for a year this very thing long clear "threat" of mucus started right side.... honestly I cant find anything on internet... and it is so bizarre.. I even took photos as thought no one would believe me, it has been for almost a year... although now can "blow it out" but its the same...on string at a time!... like a human baby icicle producing plant but its mucus instead of ice! And so thin and if I sneeze, multiple strings. I would like to know from which tube its coming from, sinus or the tube from eye to back of nose and throat, as use many eye drops... once I talk to ent if he comes up with an answer, which is probably, its "just" mucus, will put on here. But main reason the phone appointment is the pain (prob. eustachian tube).... a commenter here I must check back as she said has had 40 tubes put in ears and my spouse said, if they dont work, why keep putting in.... so I would like to ask that question. However, compared with the "urgent" cases our two ENT's here deal with, must be frustrating for them to hear our less urgent issues... but it seems many "less urgent" problems often are the ones that seem to have no "fix." J.