Clogged Eustachian Tube
Smoking Facts About Middle Ear Infections
A clogged eustachian tube can cause a middle ear infection in infants and children.
The smoking facts reveal that secondhand smoking in children can be a risk factor for otitis media.
The eustachian tube connects the middle ear to the back of nose and throat.
It provides a route for drainage of fluid and equalization of pressure in the inner ear so that the
eardrum is protected from rupture.
What Happens When the Eustachian Tube Becomes Blocked?
Like all tubes and passageways inside the body the eustachian tube is lined with tissue called mucous
membrane. One of the functions of this tissue it to moisturize any air that passes over it.
If this lining becomes irritated it will swell and create more mucus leading to a clogged
eustachian tube.
This blockage allows fluid to build up within the middle ear. Infections result from the growth an any
bacteria that may be present there.
Rupture of the ear drum is a possibility if this pressure becomes too great.
Smoking Facts About Ear Infections in Infants and Children
- Middle ear infections are frequently associated with upper respiratory tract infections.
Kids exposed to second hand smoke catch colds and upper respiratory infections more commonly than
kids who are not
secondhand smoking.
- exposure to cigarette smoke is listed as both a cause for a clogged eustachian tube and a risk factor for otitis media on the University of Maryland Medical Center website page for middle ear infection.
- A large study researched the knowledge base of causal factors of otitis media in children by examining the existing literature of 692 published studies and
concluded there was likely to be a causal relationship between parental smoking and both acute and chronic middle ear infections in infants and children.
- Inserting tubes into the ear drum to help drain fluid is the most common cause of hospitalization
in the pediatric population.
- Middle ear infections in infants and children are one of the commonest infections in early childhood.
- Secondhand smoking leads to inflammation and swelling in the mucus membranes of the upper respiratory tract causing a clogged eustachian tube and
predisposing to middle ear infections.
- Tobacco smoke is recognized as one of the main irritants of the upper respiratory tract in children.
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