Overview
A tympanic membrane perforation is also known as a ruptured eardrum. This is a hole or tear in the thin tissue that separates the ear canal from the middle ear.
A torn eardrum can result in hearing loss and increases the risk for ear infections and middle ear injuries.
Symptoms:
- Ear pain that may go away quickly
- Hearing loss
- Tinnitus (ringing in the ear)
- Vertigo (dizziness, spinning sensation)
- Nausea or vomiting from vertigo
- Clear, pus-filled, or bloody drainage from the ear
Treatment
A ruptured eardrum usually heals itself within a few weeks. However, sometimes it may need surgical repair.
Eardrum perforation is repaired with a procedure called myringoplasty.
Damaged ossicles (hearing bones) are fixed with a procedure called tympanoplasty.
If the mastoid bone has been damaged or is hard to reach, you may need a mastoidectomy or canalplasty.
