Aural fullness is a major complaint in our office. Patients complain of their ear feeling stopped up or hearing their own voice in their head. This is often caused by a patulous eustachian tube. These patients have normal eardrums, but complain of trying to equalize the pressure in their ear. One way to help alleviate this feeling is to perform a Valsava manuever. The patient will hold his or her nose, with the mouth closed, and gently perform auto -insufflation and swallow. This is giving some mild positive pressure to the ear canal. Trying this multiple times will eventually give the patient some relief. Another cause of this fullness feeling can be related to jaw issues. Regardless, most patients are told to stop nasal decongestants/steroids and hydrate.
