Fluid coming out of the ear canal is called ear discharge. There may be discharge from the ear from the external auditory canal, middle ear or mastoid space. Sometimes cerebrospinal fluid may also come. Ear discharge may appear watery, thick, inflamed, bloody or mixed. Ear discharge can be seen alone or together with fever, ear pain, itching, restlessness and neurological symptoms.
Fluid coming out of the ear canal is called ear discharge. There may be discharge from the ear from the external auditory canal, middle ear or mastoid space. Sometimes cerebrospinal fluid may also come. Ear discharge may appear watery, thick, inflamed, bloody or mixed. Ear discharge can be seen alone or together with fever, ear pain, itching, restlessness and neurological symptoms.
The most common causes of ear discharge are summarized below:
- External ear discharge
- Acute otitis externa; infections of the external ear canal.
- Necrotizing (malignant) otitis externa; It is osteomyelitis of the temporal bone, especially seen in diabetes and immunosuppressed patients.
- Otomycosis; are fungal infections.
- Dermatitis; Edema and vesicles are seen in the external ear canal due to allergens or irritants.
- Keratosis; It is a dense keratin layer deposition in the outer ear canal skin. It is generally seen in young people and bilaterally.
- Cholesteatoma; It is a painful and runny oil gland inflammation in the external ear canal.
- Tumors
- Frey’s syndrome; It is a clear external ear canal discharge seen only during the chewing movement.
- Parotid gland infections
- Cysts
- Ear discharge from the eardrum
- Bullous myringitis; It is an acute infection with bleeding vesicles in the eardrum.
- Granular myringitis; It is granulation tissue on the eardrum due to chronic inflammation.
- Middle ear and mastoid discharges
- Otitis media; are infections of the middle ear, eustachian tube, and temporal bone. It can be acute and chronic. There may be discharge and hearing loss. It can repeat.
- Tumors
- Ventilation tube; In the treatment of recurrent otitis media, ventilation tube application can be made in case of insufficient medication. In some of the patients in whom this tube is inserted, discharge may occur. Infection may also occur.
Systemic diseases that cause ear discharge
Ear-related symptoms can occur in many diseases. The main diseases that are known to cause discharge in the ear are:
- Wegener’s granulomatosis; It is an idiopathic systemic inflammatory disease in which the upper and lower respiratory tract and kidneys are affected. It causes vasculitis in small vessels. It may cause discharge by causing inflammation in the outer ear canal or middle ear. Ear discharge may become chronic.
- Churg-Strauss Syndrome; It is a disease that affects the upper and lower respiratory tracts and progresses with asthma, allergic reactions and vasculitis. There may also be discharge in the ear.
- Behcet ‘s disease; It is an inflammatory disease with recurrent mouth and genital ulcers. It can cause vasculitis in all organs, including the eye, and cause inflammation in the vessels. With the addition of infection to the inflammation in the ear, discharge may occur.