I have a perforated eardrum- need advice

So had the flu 3 days ago and i had what appeared to be an ear infection, my ear didnt hurt that much but it felt like there was alot of pressure built up. I went to blow my nose and i hear pop and blood began to run down my ear… went to the hospital and i was told i have a perforated ear drum.

I was given antibiotics and neomycin ear drops.

its been 3 days and my ear kind still feels the same and i noticed theres alot of kind dry blood, its more blood clots that aren’t completely dry, i thought it might be from the drops but im not sure anymore.

My ear feels really dirty because of the blood and the drops and im worried this will impact the healing process.

I was thinking of using a Qtip to clean my ears slightly but im not sure thats the right thing to do.

I know its only been 3 days but just dosent feel like its healing, i would of though the hole would of been closed up by now.

any advice ? how fast should i see my specialist ?

Hi Someone 4,

This is just my opinion. I’m just a regular Joe. I would see a specialist to at least get him into the loop. Your hearing is very valuable. You should do everything you can to ensure that it stays the best possible. The cost of an office visit is a small price to pay.

Jeff

Gosh, that sounds serious…

Did you see an ENT specialist at the hospital?

If you didn’t, or you’re not sure what type of doctor you saw, go to your GP and insist on getting a referral.

Similar was the case with me a few days back where I woke up with pain in my left ear. After a while it started bleeding. Went to the doctor & they informed me that I have perforated ear drum. I was hospitalized for a day as the bleeding didn’t stop and later when it stopped, I was asked to be there on 4th day for check up.

Hi, I have had around 4 perforations total throughout my 20 year long life. Your ear is going to feel gross and disgusting for probably about a week. (I used to wear my hair in a side pony tail so my ear wouldn’t drain into my hair). My ear didn’t bleed as much as your’s is sounding but I do not that it is normal for a perforation to take a week or so to heel. One time my ear drum was perforated for 8 years.

Now on the other hand, I do have nerve damage in both ears and mild hearing loss in both ears in the lower frequencies, but I have also had tons of other problems with my ears. I’m not sure if the perforations caused the hearing loss or if my other medical problems did.

I hope this helps and I wouldn’t worry too much, but you should always have a follow up appointment with your doctor about 5 days after no matter how you feel.

Feel better and good luck!

my non professional advice would be to forget the q-tip idea and get to an ENT if may not be a big deal but do you wanna guess?

I know this thread is 2yrs old, but for the sake of other seeing this, please know that Neomycin drops are VERY VERY harmful if you have a perforated ear drum! The drops get into your middle and inner ear and can cause PERMANENT hearing loss!!!

I have a permanent perforation in my ear drum and I have for a long time…it never closes…doesnt seem to bother me except for fluid leaks at night…It wont be a bother much longer when the take the cholosteotoma out of that ear next month they are taking my entire inside ear out and rebuilding it…and no I wont hear any better :frowning: so the surgeon told me.

I’ve just stumbled upon this thread, so likely won’t hear any updates from those early posts; however, I wanted to share my history. As a child, over seventy years ago, I had chicken pox that left me with a tiny hole on my left eardrum. It never healed, but technology has progressed since—not so much for me but in general. Until I was 50, my left ear was weak of hearing, but in a pique of vanity, I visited an Audiologist and was fitted with my first single-ear analog HA. A few years later, I added an inside-the-right-ear analog HA—which fell out and was lost in a large garden within a year. The HA in my left ear was cleaned and re-tubed regularly and lasted for at least 12 years. When I swam, as a child, I wore a nose plug but never an ear-plug.

— Updated —

I’ve just stumbled upon this thread, so likely won’t hear any updates from those early posts; however, I wanted to share my history. As a child, over seventy years ago, I had chicken pox that left me with a tiny hole on my left eardrum. It never healed, but technology has progressed since—not so much for me but in general. Until I was 50, my left ear was weak of hearing, but in a pique of vanity, I visited an Audiologist and was fitted with my first single-ear analog HA. A few years later, I added an inside-the-right-ear analog HA—which fell out and was lost in a large garden within a year. The HA in my left ear was cleaned and re-tubed regularly and lasted for at least 12 years. When I swam, as a child, I wore a nose plug but never an ear-plug.