Our sensory organs help see, feel and hear the world around us. As Ralph Waldo Emerson so famously said “The First Wealth is Health” but we may not always be in prime health. ENT complaints are part of some of the most common signs and symptoms which one faces in general health issues. So when should you see your ENT specialist? Five common signs are discussed below:
1. Sudden Loss of Hearing
With aging, one can have a gradual loss of hearing. However, a sudden loss of hearing can raise serious health concerns. You need to see your ENT specialist immediately. Rapid loss of hearing can occur at once or over a few days. This condition may be due to an adverse effect in the inner ear and one would suddenly realize they have lost their sense of hearing on waking up in the morning. Following this sudden hearing loss, there may be complaints of dizziness, ringing, and fullness of the ears.
Often individuals who have such episodes of hearing loss put off seeing an ENT specialist believing it might be due to earwax build-up or a sinus infection. However, you need to treat a sudden loss of hearing as a medical emergency as only timely intervention can improve the chances of complete recovery.
The ENT clinic Singapore specializes in treating sudden loss of hearing. The ENT specialists here have received foreign training in the UK, USA, Australia, and Canada and are competent in handling critical ENT cases, be it pediatric or adult-specific conditions.
2. Sinus Pain
Your sinuses may become inflamed and cause pain and discomfort. Medically termed as rhinosinusitis, this condition leads to the nasal cavities and sinus regions to be inflamed and infected. Following an upper respiratory infection, these sinus regions can get infected and inflict pain. It may also occur due to tooth infections, allergies or nasal polyps. Symptoms that go hand in hand are headaches, nasal congestion, and throat irritation.
Sinus pain may last for short periods as in the case of an acute sinusitis episode, caused by a respiratory infection. However prolonged, chronic facial pain may be due to a larger problem that needs medical intervention immediately. A sinus specialist would help you in finding out the cause of your sinus pain and determine the best course of treatment.
3. Prolonged Nasal Congestion
Nasal congestion can be annoying, waking up each night with a blocked nose gives you no peace. Did you know that a stuffy nose may be a symptom of an underlying medical issue? We generally know that a blocked nose is due to common colds or a sinus infection, but in rarer cases, it could also be due to cancerous or benign tumors in the nasal passage or a deviated septum.
So, if already 10 days have passed with no improvement, then it is high time to have your ENT appointment. Nasal congestion accompanied by high fever or an unusual coloration in your nasal discharge like a green or red coloration requires timely medical intervention. Children, less than a year having difficulty breathing along with nasal congestion, to needs to visit an experienced ENT clinic with physicians like Dr. Jeeve, Dr. Hobbs or Dr. Annabelle.
4. Sore Throat
Sore throat is a pain in the back of the throat and this pain can be uncomfortable. The discomfort is heightened by having difficulty in swallowing. The sore throat is just a symptom and your ENT doctor should determine the cause. If you have had a sore throat for over a week, then seek help from a professional.
A Strep Throat or a sore throat diagnosed through a throat swab due to Group A Streptococcus needs antibiotics to relieve symptoms and remove the bacteria. Common symptoms, in this case, include a sudden onset of sore throat coupled with fever and chills, a stomach ache, rashes and pus on tonsils. Regardless of what the combination of symptoms is, immediate medical attention needs to be sought after for your child.
5. Vertigo
Symptoms of vertigo are short-lived and isolated in many cases. However, vertigo accompanied by lightheadedness on standing, with no cause of cardiovascular origin could be due to imbalance and a referral should be made. Patients who do not revert to their normal state in a few weeks need to be seen by an ENT doctor as well.
The origin of vertigo may have different causes, one of the most common is positional vertigo due to a disorder in the inner ear. Meniere disease and vestibular neuritis or labyrinthitis are other ear-related ailments. Your ENT specialist can determine your condition based on the frequency and duration of vertigo together with other patient history details. Loss of hearing associated with tinnitus and vertigo is generally due to Meniere’s disease and this should prompt a quick ENT appointment for an evaluation and hearing test.
