Aeroplane Ear & Blocked Ears Due to Pressure: Causes, Symptoms & Remedies

Have you ever noticed a strange pressure or even pain in your ears when you reach a high altitude, especially during a plane ride? This discomfort, known scientifically as ear barotrauma, aerotitis media, or barotitis media, is a common occurrence during and sometimes persists after flights.

While it isn’t a huge matter, complications may arise, leading to symptoms like blocked ears, muffled hearing, and earache when you fly. In severe cases, temporary hearing loss might even occur, and hearing aid solutions may be needed. Let’s discover the causes, symptoms, and remedies for aeroplane ear-popping relief.

Please note that the information provided in this article is intended for general knowledge and does not constitute medical advice. If you experience persistent ear pain, discomfort, or hearing loss after flying, it’s crucial to consult a doctor or an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist. They can perform a proper examination and recommend the best course of treatment, which may include medication or referral to an audiologist for hearing evaluation.

What is an Aeroplane Ear

Aeroplane ears may be a familiar discomfort for many air passengers. It arises due to a pressure difference between the air-filled cavity inside your ear (middle ear) and the surrounding environment.

This pressure imbalance, especially during rapid altitude changes like takeoff and landing, can cause discomfort, feeling of fullness, and even temporary hearing loss in the ear.

Causes of Aeroplane Ear

Aeroplane ear happens due to a pressure imbalance between the middle ear (the air-filled cavity behind your eardrum) and the surrounding environment.

Normally, the Eustachian tube, a narrow tube connecting the middle ear to the back of your nose and throat, helps regulate air pressure in the middle ear. However, during rapid altitude changes like in flight, the Eustachian tube can struggle to keep up, leading to a pressure difference that pushes the eardrum inwards (descent) or outwards (ascent).

Symptoms of Aeroplane Ear

Aeroplane ears can cause a variety of uncomfortable sensations in your ears. Here’s a breakdown of the most common symptoms:

  • Muffled Hearing: This is a feeling like your ears are plugged or underwater. It occurs due to the pressure imbalance affecting the transmission of sound waves to the inner ear.
  • Ear Fullness or Pressure: This is a sensation of fullness or pressure building up behind your eardrum.
  • Ear Discomfort or Pain: In some cases, the pressure imbalance can lead to a dull ache or discomfort in one or both ears. This pain can worsen during rapid altitude changes.
  • Earache: A more intense version of ear discomfort, an earache can be a throbbing or sharp pain that can be quite bothersome.
  • Ringing in the Ear (Tinnitus): You might experience a ringing, buzzing, or hissing sound in one or both ears. This kind of tinnitus is usually temporary and usually resolves on its own once the pressure equalises.
  • Dizziness or Vertigo: In severe cases, the pressure imbalance can affect the inner ear structures involved in balance. This can lead to feelings of dizziness or vertigo, a sensation of spinning or lightheadedness.
  • Temporary Hearing Loss: While less common, significant pressure changes or repeated episodes of aeroplane ear can sometimes lead to temporary hearing loss.

Not everyone experiences all of these symptoms, and the severity can vary depending on the individual and the rapidity of the pressure changes. If you experience these sensations in your ears after the plane flight, remember that the condition usually resolves on its own with a pop in the ear. However, knowing how to manage and relieve the symptoms can provide better comfort when you fly.

Aeroplane Ear Popping Relief

There are several ways you can use to manage symptoms of aeroplane ears:

1. Swallowing and Yawning

Try swallowing right now. Did you hear a click or a pop? These are tiny bubbles of air that go from the back of the nose to the middle ear.

There is a part of the ear, the Eustachian tube, that makes sure that air in the middle ear is always refilled. The inner ear then absorbs this air and then it goes on and on again like a cycle. This way, it ensures that air pressure is always equal, and this action may help reduce your aeroplane ear’s symptoms.

2. Chewing Gum or Sucking on Candy

For those who wondering does gum helps with ear popping on the plane, the answer is yes it may. The theory behind chewing gum is roughly the same as the first point. Constant chewing of gum and sucking on hard candy prompts you to constantly swallow.

If you think your baby is suffering from blocked ears, you can let them suck on candy like a lollipop. Eustachian tubes in adults differ from babies. The feeling of aeroplane ears may be more painful for them because of the narrowness of it. It’s a great idea to make the baby suck on a pacifier or a bottle. 

3. Valsalva Manoeuvre or Toynbee Manoeuvre

You may have done this without actually knowing what it’s called. Take a deep breath. Close your mouth and pinch your nose. Now, gently force air out until your ears “pop”. That’s the Valsalva manoeuvre, named after the physician and anatomist named Antonio Maria Valsalva.

However, the Valsalva manoeuvre is not recommended for those with a cold or allergy cause it can cause ear infections. Instead, one may just do the Toynbee manoeuvre. With this, you close your mouth and nose like in the Valsalva manoeuvre but, instead of forcing air out, you swallow several times.

More Tips for Easing Aeroplane Ear

Here are more tips for you:

1. Use of Earplugs

Using aeroplane ear plugs may help equalise the pressure between the inner ear and the cabin environment, reducing discomfort. These special earplugs are designed to slow the rate of pressure change, helping to relieve your clogged ears during and after a plane flight.

2. Stay Hydrated

Staying hydrated helps keep the mucous membranes in your ears and throat moist, which can aid in pressure regulation. Drinking water during the flight can also help alleviate earache while flying and reduce the chances of clogged ears.

Relieve Aeroplane Ear for a Better Flight Experience

By trying these tips during your next flight, you can potentially reduce the discomfort of aeroplane ears and ensure a more enjoyable flight experience. A comfortable flight starts with feeling good, so take charge and minimise ear pressure!

For more in-depth information on ear health or if you experience persistent ear pain after flying, you may visit a doctor or audiologist who can guide you on your condition. If you would like a check on your ear health, you may contact Listening Lab at +65 6817 5100 for a hearing test to learn about your ear condition better.

About the Listening Lab

Listening Lab is a home-grown company whose mission is to help our clients restore their hearing to enjoy the life that they desire. Experiencing hearing loss can be detrimental to one’s quality of life. Hence we commit to providing high-quality hearing solutions.

Our hearing solutions include hearing tests and treatment and prescribing hearing aids. Clients may come to get their hearing checked, and we will assess whether hearing aids are required.

If hearing aids are required, clients can choose from a variety of the best hearing aid brands we provide. Each of the products offers unique features that complement daily use and perform well in helping our clients enjoy the life that they desire.

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