There are injuries of the outer, middle and inner ear.

Injuries of the auricle occur most often. There are mechanical damages, thermal (burns, frostbites) and chemical (exposure to acids and alkalis) damage. Mechanical damage to the auricle occurs as a result of bumps, bites, wounds.

The most common type of injury is wounds that can be cut, torn, chipped, bruised, etc. The depth of the wound is shallow and deep. A partial or complete detachment of the auricle is also possible. If pathogenic microorganisms get into the wound, then such a wound becomes infected. The wound is a violation of the integrity of the skin and is accompanied by pain and more or less pronounced bleeding.

First aid and treatment: superficial (shallow cuts, scratches) wounds are treated with a 3% solution of hydrogen peroxide, the skin around the wound can be treated with alcohol solution of iodine, or diamond green, then a sterile pressing bandage is applied. Deep wounds require surgical treatment of the wound and suturing, these manipulations are performed either in the polyclinic or at the emergency room. First aid for deep wounds is the same as for superficial wounds.

If the auricle is completely torn off, it should be sewn no later than 8-10 hours after injury, provided the torn organ is properly retained. Torn off the auricle should be wrapped in a clean damp cloth, put in a jar and cover with ice.

In this case, you should seek medical help from an ENT hospital.

Due to the blunt trauma of the auricle (domestic or sports), an oocyte can arise , which is a limited accumulation of blood between the cartilage and the perichondrium. Localized an othematoma on the anterior surface of the auricle, more often in its upper part, but can extend to the entire auricle, except the earlobe. Otogematoma looks like a protruding pale pink or dark blue, painless. The general condition is not broken, the body temperature is not increased.

First aid and treatment: do not open it by yourself. This will lead to its infection and the development of perichondritis (inflammation of the cartilage).

Treatment is performed in the ENT hospital, where puncture or opening of the othematoma is performed, after which a pressure bandage is applied. Antibiotics are prescribed.

After injury of the auricle, perichondritis often arises - an inflammation of the cartilage of the auricle. Infection occurs with pyogenic pathogens (staphylococci, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) when the integrity of the skin is compromised.

Symptoms: first there is pain in the area of ​​the auricle, the skin becomes thickened, due to swelling, hyperemic, the contours of the anterior surface of the auricle disappear. When you feel your ear, you feel pain in all its parts, except for the ear lobe. The disease gradually progresses, after a few days the pus is collected under the perichondrium. Due to the fact that the auricle is deprived of nutrition, purulent melting of cartilage occurs. The auricle becomes wrinkled and shrinks in size. The general condition of the patient is little disturbed, almost always there is an increase in body temperature to 37.2-37.6 degrees.

Treatment: conducted in the ENT hospital, antibiotics are administered parenterally (intramuscularly) for 7-15 days. Locally used antiseptics, alcohol compresses, quartz irradiation.

Burns of the auricle arise as a result of direct exposure to it of high temperature (flame, boiling water, burning and hot liquids and gases, incandescent objects and molten metals, etc.) as well as by the action of concentrated acids and alkalis (chemical burns).

There are four degrees of burns of the auricle:

1. Redness;

2. Redness and swelling of the tissues with the formation of blisters;

3. Necrosis of the skin;

4. Necrosis of the skin and underlying tissues, including cartilaginous.

First aid and treatment: first of all, it is necessary to eliminate the further exposure to high temperature (extinguish the flame); Burn the auricle with a sterile bandage or with a clean cotton cloth ironed. Do not touch the burnt surface with hands, or puncture the blisters and lubricate with various ointments and sunflower oil. A dressing impregnated with alcohol or cologne can reduce pain.

Isolated burns of the auricle are rare, usually they are combined with burns of the face and neck, as well as other parts of the body. Treatment is carried out in a specialized burn center. For burns of 2-4 degrees, tetanus antiserum is mandatory.

First aid for chemical burns depends on the type of chemical. When burned with acids (except sulfuric acid), the surface of the burn is washed for 15-30 minutes under a stream of cold water. Sulfuric acid generates heat when interacting with water, which can only aggravate the burn. After washing under the stream of water, it is necessary to neutralize the effect of the chemical: when burned with acid, rinse the burnt surface with a solution of drinking soda (1-2 teaspoons per 1 liter of water); When burned with alkali - a weak solution of citric or acetic acid. After treatment, apply a dry bandage and consult a doctor.

Frostbites of the auricle - occur quite often, there are four degrees of frostbite:

1. When, after thawing a pale and insensitive ear, there is swelling and cyanosis of the skin;

2. Bubble formation;

3. Necrosis of the skin and subcutaneous fat, especially on the free edge of the auricle;

4. Necrosis of the skin and cartilage.

First aid and treatment: it is necessary to restore blood circulation as soon as possible, for this, careful rubbing of the auricle with vodka, camphor or boric alcohol is done. You can also rub the ear sink with a palm or a soft woolen cloth. After that, you need to wear a warm hat covering your ears. In the presence of blisters, you can not grind, you can not pierce the blisters by yourself. The frosted auricle must be gently wiped with alcohol and a sterile bandage applied. Frostbites of 2-4 degree are treated in the hospital, tetanus antiserum is necessarily introduced. If necessary, antibiotics are prescribed.

Injuries of the external auditory canal are observed with a fall on the chin, impacts on the lower jaw, inept attempts to extract foreign bodies from the external auditory canal (mainly in children), damage to the auditory can occur simultaneously with traumas of the auricle. When falling on the chin or impact on the face, a fractured front wall of the external auditory canal occurs.

Symptoms: a sharp pain when chewing and opening the mouth, with ruptured skin of the external ear canal - bleeding from the ear.

First aid and treatment: with a bleeding impose a sterile bandage on the ear. Further treatment is carried out in the department of maxillofacial surgery of the hospital together with an ENT doctor. In the hospital, with tears in the skin of the external auditory canal, sutures are applied and a tight tampon impregnated with ointment with antibiotics is injected.

Trauma (rupture) of the tympanic membrane can be combined with damage to the outer and inner ear, but can also be isolated. Isolated trauma (rupture of the tympanic membrane) - occur when foreign acute bodies enter the external auditory canal, with a sudden change in atmospheric pressure (blow to the ear, a kiss in the ear), strong explosions at close range. A rupture of the tympanic membrane can occur with a trauma to the skull.

Symptoms and course: the patient complains of pain in the ear, noise, hearing loss.

Diagnosis is established on the basis of complaints and otoscopy (examination of the ear), a micro-examination (examination of the tympanic membrane under a microscope). If necessary, an x-ray of the bones of the skull is performed.

Treatment: conducted in the ENT hospital. Small defects of the tympanic membrane can be closed independently. If the perforation (rupture) is large, or the defect is not closed for a long time, then surgical methods (miringoplasty) are used.
To prevent the development of infection (inflammation) antibiotics are prescribed.

Acute acoustic trauma. Acute acoustic trauma is defined as hearing impairment caused by a single short-term exposure to strong sound. When shooting or blasting at close range, a combination of mechanical ear trauma (tympanic membrane, auditory ossicles, inner ear membranes) with an air wave with acoustic trauma is noted. Acute acoustic trauma can result from the impact of sharp high (the whistle of a locomotive) or extremely intense (noise of jet engines) sounds. When the shock wave strikes, both the middle and inner ear suffer.

Symptoms: ballroom complains of a sharp decrease in hearing, severe noise and ringing in the ears, a state of stunnedness. Hearing loss is bilateral, the condition worsens over time.
The diagnosis is established on the basis of the examination data, and also the hearing test - audiometry is carried out.

Treatment is conducted in an ENT hospital. Assign substances that improve cerebral circulation, B vitamins, nicotinic acid. If the tympanic membrane and auditory ossicles are damaged, appropriate treatment is performed.