[2006 Thread] Has anyone had a tickling sensation in the ear?

[Karen G]

(Before we all get confused (ME!) this is a 2 year old post that was dug out of mothballs today!) DeniseM

For about six months now I have had a tickling sensation in my right ear--sort of feels like hair getting into my ear and tickling just inside at the beginning of the ear canal. I wear my hair short and I never see any hair that would cause the symptoms. I never feel it in my left ear.

I can scratch the area with my fingernail and I know right where the sensation is, but scratching brings no relief. It comes and goes for no apparent reason. I've also had some sinus drainage down my throat for the last three months. I've had sinus infections in the past that have responded to antibiotics.

At my annual physical in January my primary care doctor noticed lots of earwax in the area and removed it, but it seemed to make the tickling sensation more pronounced rather than relieve it. I saw an ENT specialist last week who couldn't see anything abnormal and didn't have any idea what could be causing it. He prescribed an antibiotic (xithromax), prednisone for 5 days in decreasing dosage, and some ear drops to use three times a day. I finished the medicine today with no change in the symptoms--still the tickling from time to time and still the sinus drainage.

My hearing is not affected in any way, but the sensation is very annoying. It's kind of hard to describe--a tickling, sometimes almost like a vibration or sinus pressure if I press on my face between my nose and ear. Any ideas?

 

[ladycody]

For about six months now I have had a tickling sensation in my right ear--sort of feels like hair getting into my ear and tickling just inside at the beginning of the ear canal. I wear my hair short and I never see any hair that would cause the symptoms. I never feel it in my left ear.

I had a similar sensation in my left ear for about 3 weeks. No idea what it was but agree that it was incredibly annoying and even tweazed looking for relief (which did no good btw). It has since stopped but I still dont know what caused it...I'm just glad it's gone. Wish I could be of more help.

 

[TravelSFO]

This is a little disgusting, but there was a time (period of a few weeks) where I had some tickling in my ear. I kept poking at it with my finger and it would stop momentarily -- one day, I was poking and I swear something scurried out of my ear!

I was horrified. But I was never able to find that thing whatever it was ..

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Yes. I had a tickling sensation in my ear last night, shortly after I got under the covers .... didn't mind it a bit.

 

[philemer]

Yes. I had a tickling sensation in my ear last night, shortly after I got under the covers .... didn't mind it a bit.

Steve, you are strange!!

Phil

 

[DenMar]

I have the same exact problem in my right ear also. It is not every day, but seems to itch in short periods. Scratching or pressure does make it feel better, but it very temporary.
This has been going on for close to a year now. With no relief in sight.
If you have any luck with this, please post your findings.

 

[Karen G]

I find it interesting that the three of us who have this problem are in the Northwest--two in Washington and one in Oregon. I wonder if there's any connection?

 

[shugga]

My ears have been so itchy all winter. I've been putting some hydrocortisone cream in them each morning. seems to help a little. The skin in the ear is very dry and flakey also.
Don't know what it is but it's very annoying!
By the way I'm in NC and it never happened in New Jersey!

 

[MusicMan]

I doubt it. I had the same thing a while back and I'm in Virginia. I have no clue what caused or why it went away. While it was there it drove me BATTY!!

 

[Gerie]

I had something for the longest time...more an itchiness than a tickling. It got so bad it would actually ooze, at which point I brought it to a doctor's attention. She diagnosed "eczema." She prescribed a cream, Elocon, which is mometason furoate cream. I was told to apply it once daily and not use it for more than two weeks straight. Well, it worked wonderfully. It's a big tube and the condition recurs from time to time, but usually one or two doses keeps it from getting bad.

Gerie

 

[debraxh]

I find it interesting that the three of us who have this problem are in the Northwest--two in Washington and one in Oregon. I wonder if there's any connection?

Hmmm, Steve's in the Northwest, right?

 

[Karen G]

Hmmm, Steve's in the Northwest, right?

I'm pretty sure what Steve is describing is totally unrelated to what I'm talking about!

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

I'm pretty sure what Steve is describing is totally unrelated to what I'm talking about!

Yes. Though Karen and I may live close to each other, she is not the cause of the tickling in my ear, nor am I the origin of hers.

 

[BevL]

I was starting to wonder - thought we had the beginnings of a Jerry Springer episode here - LOL!!

Bev

Yes. Though Karen and I may live close to each other, she is not the cause of the tickling in my ear, nor am I the origin of hers.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

I was starting to wonder - thought we had the beginnings of a Jerry Springer episode here - LOL!!

Bev

Maybe it could have been more like a middle-aged version of Desperate Housewives. In my case, you could call it Desperate Waistlines.

 

[DeniseM]

I have seasonal allergies, and whenever they occur, I have the ear tickle too - My Dr. says it another allergy symptom.

 

[swift]

Have you tried taking decongestion such as Benadril?

 

[Karen G]

My Dr. says it another allergy symptom.

Very interesting--do you take any kind of antihistamine or other medicine that relieves the symptoms? What kinds of things are you allergic to?

 

[MULTIZ321]

Karen,

The glands that produce earwax are located at the base of hairs located within the ear canal - so you're not likely to "see" the hairs unless a practitioner looks into your ear canal with a video-otoscope that will display the image on a monitor you both can view. The amount of wax one produces varies as does the amount of hair. Earwax actually migrates out of the ear canal, albeit a very slow process. Sometimes you can feel the "migration" but the "tickling” would be very brief. The outer portion of the ear canal is cartilaginous and the inner portion is bony (osseous, and is actually part of the skull). The juncture of the cartilaginous portion and the bony portion is called the isthmus. It is usually at the isthmus that some folks usually feel a “tickling” or an “itch”. By the way, it is not uncommon for these symptoms to be unilateral. Many often find relief with a little mineral oil or a lavage with a 50-50 solution of white vinegar and rubbing alcohol, provided there is no eardrum perforation.

The sinus drainage is a separate issue and is not directly related to what you describe as occurring in the ear canal. Especially since you describe an exam by your ENT physician who did not see any evidence of an External Otitis.

The air-filled middle ear cavity that also houses the 3 tiny bones connecting the eardrum to the inner ear has a mucous membrane lining, similar to your Eustachian tube, oral cavity and sinus cavities. The air in the middle ear goes through a recycling process – it gets absorbed and is replenished when you swallow which opens the Eustachian tube, allowing an exchange of air from the oral cavity to the middle ear cavity. If there is edema (tissue swelling), you don’t get a proper air exchange and the middle ear develops a negative pressure (i.e., the air pressure in the ear canal is greater than the air pressure in the middle ear cavity). In the normal state, the air pressure should be essentially the same as ambient pressure. Depending on the degree of negative pressure, you may experience aural fullness or a plugged sensation. Fluid may also develop in the middle ear. One can have otitis media with or without fluid. In addition to an otoscopic examination, a test called Tympanometry can measure the pressure of the middle ear and also provide information about the mobility of the eardrum. From your description, it doesn’t appear that your ENT physician thought you had Otitis media either.

Where the jaw attaches to the skull – the temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ) - is very close to the ear canal. Sometimes TMJ problems have the discomfort localized to the ear canal. So, if all the other exams turn up negative and the problem persists, you might want to consider seeing a dentist to rule out a TMJ disorder.

Good luck

Richard

 

[Karen G]

Richard, thank you so much for that explanation of how the ear works. It's interesting that you mentioned the TMJ aspect. At my last dental exam, the dentist noticed some wearing away of my back teeth and recommended a mouth guard to wear at night. I have been experiencing some jaw pain and sometimes the feeling that my jaw might lock. My jaw got really uncomfortable during the teeth cleaning process and the dentist noticed some grinding sounds, which I could also hear very loudly inside my head.

It all does seem to be related. Maybe if I give it some time and faithfully wear the night guard, it will get better.

Isn't it amazing what you can learn on TUG!!

 

[DeniseM]

Very interesting--do you take any kind of antihistamine or other medicine that relieves the symptoms? What kinds of things are you allergic to?

I take Benadryl at night and Sudafed during the day when it's bothering me. I am allergic to pollen and stuff like that.

 

[andy]

You may be hearing your heart beat

 

[Liz Wolf-Spada]

This may not help and sounds wierd, but try putting a quarter in your ear. I had this happen a lot, but it was more itching and the quarter pulls heat out of your ear and seems to help. Anyway, it has no side effects.
Liz

 

[azsunluvr]

Yes. I had a tickling sensation in my ear last night, shortly after I got under the covers .... didn't mind it a bit.

Steve, do you have a brother who lives in Renton? I swear I can hear these words coming from the mouth of a friend, who's last name is also Nelson, who lives in Renton.

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

Steve, do you have a brother who lives in Renton? I swear I can hear these words coming from the mouth of a friend, who's last name is also Nelson, who lives in Renton.

No, but you should also consider that "Nelson" is a pretty common last name. Maybe there's a reason there are a lot of us.