I have a pain in my ear that spreads to my throat and neck. What should I do?

Question

I am a flight attendant. Yesterday I spent 8 hours in a propeller plane. The vibration of the engines accentuated the pain in my ears. I have not been swimming and I have not had a cold either. However, I feel more tired than normal and have been having trouble sleeping well for the past 3 days. The pain in my ear started during the flight yesterday and has been persisting since. The pain in my throat has intensified throughout the day.

Alexandre Chagnon · Accepted Answer

Good evening ma'am, In order to know what to do in a situation like this, we first need to know what is more likely to be involved, a virus behind the eardrum (middle ear) or a virus in front of the eardrum (otitis externa). To find this information, we usually look to see if you've had a cold or if you've been bathing (e.g., hot tubbing) recently. Have you had a cold? Thank you for these details. It might be worthwhile, before attempting to see a doctor, to try a technique to see if the pain might be coming from a pressure imbalance in the ear caused by blockage of the canal that connects the throat and middle ear (the Eustachian tube). To do this, you will need a product sold in pharmacies either Otrivin™ or Dristan™ spray. You simply spray into your nose, wait 30-45 minutes, then pinch your nose, close your mouth and "blow" as if to unclog your ear. However, when blowing, try to swallow at the same time. It sounds complicated explained like that, but it's not. If you have a bit of a stuffy nose, it might be worth blowing your nose first or using a product like Hydrasense™. You can repeat this technique as needed and use Otrivin™ or Dristan™ maximum 3 times a day. If the technique increases the pain in the ear, or doesn't change anything after 2 days, you'll need to go see a doctor. Good evening, Alexandre Chagnon, pharmacist