Otitis is an inflammation of the ear. Depending on the part of the ear affected by inflammation, otitis can be of three types (external, middle, internal). Middle ear otitis is the most common. If you cannot see a doctor (otolaryngologist), there are ways to treat otitis at home, meaning self-treatment. But remember, as soon as possible, be sure to consult a professional doctor to make an accurate diagnosis, if all symptoms have already disappeared. First and foremost, you will make sure that the ear is completely healthy, and the disease has completely passed.
Home Treatment for External Ear Inflammation
Usually, the treatment of external ear inflammation (external otitis) is local. Cotton wicks are inserted into the external auditory canal, which must be moistened in alcohol, a 70% solution, and then a warming compress is applied to the ear. If the inflammation has spread widely, the canal should be cleaned quite often with a solution of boric acid or furacilin. In cases of acute external ear inflammation, sulfonamides, antibiotics may be applied, but only on the recommendation of a doctor.
Home Treatment for Middle Ear Inflammation
For effective home treatment of middle ear otitis, it is necessary to strictly observe bed rest and apply constant warming compresses to relieve inflammation quickly. Pain sensations in middle ear otitis are not just unpleasant, but quite severe, so you can drop warm 96% alcohol into the ear to reduce the pain syndrome, but this procedure should be done only before pus appears. If during the first three days of the disease, there is no spontaneous discharge of pus, then an urgent procedure such as incision of the tympanic membrane (paracentesis) is necessary, which can only be performed by a doctor in a hospital.
When pus appears, treatment for middle ear otitis should be continued. This should now be done with the help of antibacterial drops, such as Levomycetin alcohol, Sofradex, etc. If your treatment is correct, then you need to continue it for about ten days, even if all signs of the disease have disappeared.
To accelerate the drainage of pus and reduce swelling of the Eustachian tube of the middle ear, use common nasal drops (Nazivin, Naphthyzin, Sanorin, Tizin, etc.).
Home Treatment for Inner Ear Inflammation
Inner ear inflammation is also called labyrinthitis or inner otitis. It occurs if you did not treat middle ear otitis properly, as the infection got into the inner ear with the bloodstream, and the inflammatory process has deepened. With this form of otitis, the patient’s balance is disturbed, hearing decreases, and sometimes even complete deafness can occur. To heal the ear and cope with the disease, you need to prepare the following decoction. This is a medicinal collection consisting of eucalyptus leaves, celandine herb, licorice root, calendula flowers, and knotweed herb. All these herbs should be taken in a ratio of 3:2:2:4:4. Mix all the herbs well, and pour a tablespoon of the crushed mixture with a glass of boiling water, then let it infuse for half an hour. Drink this infusion in small portions throughout the day.
General Recommendations for Otitis Treatment
Among the popular folk methods of treating otitis, the following are highlighted:
For various types of otitis, even chronic ones, make alcohol compresses with gauze and polyethylene, vodka, alcohol, or something alcoholic. Compresses should be done overnight, wrapping the head and ear well with a scarf (preferably from dog hair), pre-dropping special drops into the ear.
Quickly relieve ear pain and provide an anti-inflammatory effect will help a juniper tincture, which should be instilled into the ear.
If the ears hurt and suppurate, such a tincture can help: pour one glass of water into an enamel dish, put five bay leaves, bring to a boil and let it infuse for 2 hours, tightly covering with a lid and towel. Such a broth should be instilled into the diseased ear by a few drops and drunk 3 tablespoons of it warm. The procedure should be repeated twice a day.
With otitis, put a geranium leaf with small blue flowers into the ear, previously dried and washed, and the pain will subside a little after 10 minutes.
With acute otitis media, special cakes should be made for the diseased ear. It is quite simple to prepare it. You need to take wheat or rye flour and knead it on camphor alcohol, diluted in a ratio of 1:2 with water. One beaten chicken egg and a teaspoon of linseed oil should be added to this mixture. Make a small hole in the prepared cake in the middle so that the ear shell is free. Attach the cake to the diseased ear and cover it with wax paper.
In case of chronic otitis media accompanied by purulent discharge, raspberry, or rather its roots, will help cope with this problem. In autumn, clean the raspberry roots from the ground, finely chop them and brew in 1 liter of water, then infuse for about 12 hours, and then strain well. This infusion for otitis should be taken by 3/4 cup twice a day for one month. At the same time, hearing will improve significantly, and even old defects of the tympanic membrane will heal.
Hot milk with a little hemp oil added during boiling is a good remedy for rinsing the ear.
Also, peppermint juice is a good remedy for ear disease, which should be instilled into the inflamed ear. It is best to mix mint juice with water, slightly sweetened with honey.
Drops with onion juice help to relieve inflammation. A cotton swab soaked in onion juice is inserted into the diseased ear, and the swab should be changed every two hours.