Stuffy nose and headache: no fever

In the modern world, headache is one of the most common problems with which patients consult a doctor.

Moreover, each patient describes it differently - pulsating, aching, sharp, unbearable, squeezing, sharp. Often, along with a headache, congestion in one or both ears, dizziness, weakness and drowsiness are observed. Such symptoms may indicate a wide variety of diseases and the causes of their occurrence, requiring proper diagnosis and treatment.

So what are the causes of headaches? Why are my ears clogged? How to make a correct diagnosis? And what treatment will be the most effective?

Important! Headaches and ear congestion are not independent diseases - they are only symptoms of serious illnesses.

They signal disturbances in the functioning of the body and the occurrence of serious malfunctions in the functioning of its systems and organs.

Causes of headaches and ear congestion

Typical causes of symptoms include:

weather dependence – characterized by the body’s high sensitivity to changes in the weather (in particular, changes in atmospheric pressure). The human middle ear is a cavity filled with air, which has its own pressure. Its change in the ear depends on atmospheric values, which change due to weather conditions or the environment (takeoff and landing on an airplane, diving to depth);
Nasal congestion – the middle ear receives air when inhaling. Considering that the nasal passages are blocked, the pressure in the ears decreases, which is why there is a feeling of muffledness;
Increased intracranial pressure is a common cause of headaches and ear congestion. The pressure has a negative effect on the frontal, temporal and occipital lobes of the head, and also creates a deafening effect on the ears.

The last point is extremely important in identifying the true causes of symptoms, since the condition symbolizes serious illnesses.

Headache and nasal congestion in the evening

Nasal congestion in combination with headache is a manifestation of a significant number of different pathological processes. Finding out the causes of the disease makes it possible to prescribe the correct treatment and avoid the development of complications, as well as negative consequences for the patient’s body.

Causes of nasal congestion with headache

Nasal congestion, which develops in combination with headache, is a polyetiological pathological manifestation. This means that the syndrome develops due to the presence of several diseases, which include:

inflammatory processes localized in the paranasal sinuses;
furunculosis;
allergic rhinoconjunctivitis;
formation of neoplasms in the nasal cavity.

Groups of diseases in which the nose is stuffy, there is a headache, there is no fever, although they are united by the same symptoms, they have different approaches to effective treatment.

Inflammatory processes in the sinuses

Anatomically, the paranasal sinuses are cavity formations of the bones of the facial skull that connect to the nasal cavity. These include the maxillary, frontal, sphenoid sinuses or sinuses.

In diseases of the nasal mucosa, the inflammatory process spreads to the paranasal sinuses. This process is combined with the term sinusitis. Quite often, an isolated pathological process is identified in the maxillary (sinusitis), sphenoid (sphenoiditis) and frontal (frontal) sinuses.

There are several known most common causes of inflammation of the paranasal sinuses:

acute respiratory viral infection, which develops catarrhal inflammation of the mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract, including any paranasal sinuses;
bacterial infection (staphylococci, streptococci, intestinal, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella, Proteus), characterized by a more severe course with frequent development of a purulent process (pus accumulates in the cavity of the frontal, maxillary or sphenoid sinus);
non-infectious causes of the inflammatory process in the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses, the most common of which is an allergic reaction with swelling of the mucous membrane.

Combined inflammation of several sinuses at once has a more severe course and can be accompanied by intoxication of the body. In this case, nasal congestion and headache are accompanied by an increase in body temperature.

Furunculosis

The term boil describes a purulent bacterial process in which inflammation affects the hair follicle located in the skin.

The development of a boil in the nasal area is accompanied by the fact that it becomes difficult to breathe, or one nasal canal is completely blocked (depending on the extent of the inflammation), and a headache also appears, but the body temperature does not increase. The course of furunculosis is accompanied by a localized accumulation of pus in the area of the inflamed bulb. When the cavity breaks through, the patient experiences a state of improvement.

Source: https://novosibmemorial.ru/golovnaja-bol-i-zalozhennost-nosa-po-vecheram/

What diseases can we talk about?

When you have a headache and stuffy ears, you can assume several diseases:

Arterial hypertension – increased blood pressure. The pathology is accompanied by inevitable pain in the head, noise in the ears, flickering of spots before the eyes and a feeling of heaviness in the chest. The disease is dangerous because it can be a harbinger of stroke, heart failure or myocardial infarction. A sharp increase in blood pressure (hypertensive crisis) may depend on weather conditions or stress.
Osteochondrosis is an inflammatory process localized in the area of intervertebral discs and tissues. The pathology affects both older people, who develop it due to age, and young people due to a sedentary lifestyle. The most common area of damage is the cervical spine, as a result of which the process affects not only the spine, but also the blood vessels, squeezing them when the vertebrae are deformed. This leads to disruption of the blood supply to the brain and changes in intracranial pressure.
Colds - ARVI and flu are almost always accompanied by damage to the respiratory tract, fever and nasal congestion. The brain suffers from a lack of oxygen, which causes headaches. Ears are blocked due to swelling of the nasal mucosa.
Sinusitis - the causes of pain in the head and dullness are similar to a cold, but the disease itself is much more dangerous due to the presence of a purulent process in the nasal sinuses. Pain in the back of the head is one of the symptoms of sinusitis.
Ear diseases - if there is an inflammatory process, then pain inside the ear, swelling, fever, and discharge are added to the general symptoms. Common pathologies are otitis (acute and chronic), mastoiditis (complications after the inflammatory process), inflammation of the labyrinth (inner ear).
Earwax – this phenomenon occurs when there is a lack of ear care, when too much sulfur accumulates. In the first stages, a person’s hearing deteriorates. If you ignore the problem, the sulfur becomes more and more, and its mass begins to put pressure on the eardrum, which is accompanied by a headache. In exceptional cases, nausea and vomiting may occur.
Injuries - this includes mechanical damage to the ears due to blows, falls, burns, frostbite, as well as foreign objects and chemical liquids (acid, alkali) entering the ear canal. Serious ear injuries often result in a ruptured or damaged eardrum, leading to hearing loss.

Considering the seriousness of each pathology, you should not postpone a visit to the doctor. An exception is water flowing into the ear after a swimming pool, shower or other water treatments. The situation may also be accompanied by a headache and ear congestion, but the symptoms immediately disappear after removing the fluid from the ears.

Causes of congestion

When there are no pronounced signs of a runny nose, but the nose “does not breathe,” the reasons for this condition may be the following:

Injury , accompanied by pain upon injury and after it. The duration of pain depends on the severity of the injury.
A burn to the mucous membrane , like frostbite, causes pain and difficulty breathing.
Skin inflammatory processes (furunculosis or streptoderma) are characterized by purulent inflammation and are accompanied by throbbing pain.
Acne in the nasal passage accompanied by infection can cause headaches and congestion.
Herpes . Most often covering the wings of the nose, accompanied by burning and itching.
Neurological diseases of the facial part are often manifested by a runny nose. The pain is acute, widespread, paroxysmal in nature. A person feels that the eye near the nose hurts, the eye sockets suffer, and the hands go numb. The patient involuntarily squeezes the bridge of his nose as the symptoms increase, and he experiences difficulty breathing.
Cluster tension pains cause pain in the orbital area. The affected eye begins to water. In this case, the nasal mucosa may swell. Most often, such attacks are observed in adult men.
Eye diseases provoke headaches localized in the temporal and frontal areas.

Unpleasant symptoms require observation by a doctor, who will prescribe a diagnosis and decide on treatment. In addition to headaches and nasal pain, a person may experience nosebleeds. They are provoked by vascular pathologists. If a patient’s blood pressure often fluctuates, the load on the vessels increases and the weakest of them burst.

Old head and neck injuries sometimes make themselves felt - the head and nose hurt. In such cases, making a diagnosis is not easy. The pain can be localized in the head and radiate to the nose, and vice versa. In addition, the patient may suffer from other diseases with similar symptoms.

Reason for appearance

The main cause of tinnitus with cervical osteochondrosis is impaired blood circulation in the neck due to deformation of the spinal lumen and the vertebrae themselves. The disease is often accompanied by pathological growths on bone tissue, resulting in disruption of the nutrition of the tissues of the head and inner ear. In some situations, ear congestion and noise in them increases several times, these are:

alcohol abuse and smoking;
traumatic brain injuries;
diseases of the endocrine glands;
pathologies of the heart and kidneys;
frequent consumption of strong coffee and tea;
chronic fatigue;
viral infections;
chronic or acute form of otitis.

All these factors contribute to impaired blood flow, causing hypoxia and increasing unpleasant symptoms. If at least one of the listed factors is present, then it is necessary to begin therapy to combat this deviation.

Treatment and prevention of diseases accompanied by symptoms of headache and ear congestion

It is always easier to prevent a disease than to treat it later. The same goes for headaches in the temples and back of the head, accompanied by congestion in the ears:

eat well and balanced: the diet should contain fresh vegetables, fruits and herbs;
drink at least 2.5 liters of water per day;
reduce the consumption of salty foods and smoked foods so that excess fluid does not accumulate in the body;
rest and get enough sleep;
stop smoking and do not abuse alcohol;
preventing the development of osteochondrosis is simple: constant physical activity. This could be swimming, daily walking, morning exercises, or working out in the gym. It is better to sleep on an orthopedic pillow.

Which doctor should I contact?

First of all, you need to visit your doctor or make an appointment with a therapist. It is he who must determine the causes of the symptoms. If you do this yourself and directly contact an ENT specialist, you can waste valuable time. Especially if the true cause of the symptoms is arterial hypertension and pathology of the cardiovascular system.

The therapist will conduct an examination and collect an anamnesis about the nature of the disease. If necessary, you will need to take blood and urine tests. Based on all the data, the doctor will prescribe treatment or refer you to a specialist (cardiologist, neurologist).

Stuffed ears: what could this symptom mean?

The information in this section cannot be used for self-diagnosis and self-treatment. In case of pain or other exacerbation of the disease, diagnostic tests should be prescribed only by the attending physician. To make a diagnosis and properly prescribe treatment, you should contact your doctor. If the appearance of tinnitus is not associated with damage to the ENT organs, an examination by other specialists may be required. Depending on the accompanying symptoms, the patient will be referred to a general practitioner or pediatrician, dentist, cardiologist, endocrinologist, neurologist, surgeon, or psychiatrist. It is no secret that there are people who are genetically resistant to HIV. It turns out that this resistance may be a panacea for some patients. Metabolon Inc. Metabolon's new technology was tested on plasma samples from people without diabetes in this group, revealing a relationship between insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular disease, who had a wide range of insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance.

Ear congestion in combination with dizziness is often caused by pathologies of the hearing organ. These include the following:.

First aid

The answer to the question of what to do if your ears are blocked and your head hurts is always the same - seek help from a doctor. For unbearable pain, symptomatic treatment can be used:

analgesics - analgin is considered the simplest and most accessible (no more than two tablets at a time). Aspirin is less effective, but the drug thins the blood and improves blood flow. Ibuprofen is the most suitable remedy for relieving headaches;
combined action analgesics – drugs that combine several active substances to achieve a better effect. These include Tempalgin, Citramon, Fervex;
antihypertensive drugs - you need to be extremely careful with this group of drugs, because if the dosage is incorrect, blood pressure can drop below normal, which is much worse. In addition, it is necessary to reduce pressure only after measuring it, and not by feeling. Normal values are considered to be 120/80. At the same time, in chronic hypertensive patients it can vary up to 140 and even 160 (upper values) and at the same time people feel good. If headaches occur, patients with hypertension should measure their blood pressure and take their regular hypertension medications as prescribed by their doctor. Other people are recommended to take rapid-acting antihypertensive drugs - Nifedipine (no more than 5 mg for the first dose) sublingually or orally; Captopril (6.25 mg); Nitroglycerin (0.8 mg);
nasal drops – for a cold, drops based on xylometazoline (Xylene, Otrivin, DlyaNos) should be placed into the nostrils. Removing swelling of the mucous membrane will provide full access of oxygen to the brain, which will relieve congestion in the ears and headaches.

Important: do not use symptomatic treatment before visiting a doctor. This will blur the clinical picture of the disease and complicate the diagnosis.

Stuffy nose and headache: causes of unpleasant symptoms

If a patient has a stuffy nose and a headache , then this indicates a serious illness. First of all, the patient should not delay the visit and seek help from a specialist. These problems are dealt with by an otolaryngologist. He will conduct an examination and examination, find out the cause of the disease and prescribe adequate treatment.

The causes of nasal congestion and pain in the head can be:

Sinusitis.
Frontit.
Allergic rhinitis.
Furunculosis.
Sinusitis.
Inflammatory process in the sphenoidal sinus.

Treatment

The use of symptomatic treatment allows you to get rid of headaches and ear congestion for a short period of time. This is due to the effect of the drugs. First of all, it is necessary to act on the source of inflammation and the underlying disease.

Arterial hypertension:

inhibitors - the main effect is vasodilation. Enalapril, Captopril, Lisinopril;
β-blockers - drugs act only on the receptors of the heart muscle, regulating the release of blood. Atenolol, Metoprolol, Nebilet;
Direct-acting vasodilators - reduce blood pressure due to gradual dilation of blood vessels, which is indicated for hypersensitive people with a decrease in blood pressure. Dibazol, Hydrazaline.

Treatment is prescribed individually depending on the stage of the disease, blood pressure values and drug tolerance. Sometimes it takes a long time to select medications to determine which combination has the best effect.

Osteochondrosis:

Diclofenac and its derivatives (Voltaren, Ortofen) - have an anti-inflammatory effect and enhance the analgesic effect of other drugs. Prohibited for use by pregnant and lactating women;
Ibuprofen and analogues (Nurofen, Dolgit) - a similar effect, but can be taken during breastfeeding and pregnancy under the supervision of a doctor;
Indomethacin (Indovazin, Arthrocid) - have a targeted effect on inflamed tissue.

The drugs have an anti-inflammatory and analgesic effect. It is recommended to use only after examination and prescription by a doctor.

Ear diseases:

antibacterial group - Normax;
combination drugs – Fugentin;
anti-inflammatory group – Otipax.

The drugs are used for inflammatory processes in the ears and are prescribed by an ENT specialist.

Sinusitis:

antibiotics – for sinusitis with bacterial flora. Drugs – Azithromycin, Cefazolin; Ofloxacin;
adrenergic agonists - relieve nasal congestion and promote the release of pus. Oxymetazoline, Galazolin, Sanorin;
corticosteroids - used for sinusitis of various natures and have an anti-inflammatory effect. Nasonex, Beconase, Fluticasone.

In some cases, to relieve headaches and ear congestion, you can use traditional medicine recipes, but only as an adjuvant and after consultation with a doctor:

Hawthorn and periwinkle. 1 tablespoon of each plant is poured with 200 ml of boiling water and left in a water bath for 30 minutes. The cooled broth is taken one tablespoon 3-4 times before meals.
Raspberry branches. Dry plants are poured with boiling water in the ratio of 1 tablespoon of plants per 200 ml of water. Infuse for 12 hours and take 1 tablespoon before meals 3-4 times a day.
Tincture of anise seeds and rosehip oil. The solution is instilled into the ear for inflammation, 2-3 drops in the evening.

The products have a calming effect, relieve headaches and saturate the body with vitamins.

If your ears get stuffy and your head hurts when you have a runny nose

Every person has at least once encountered a problem that can be expressed in a desperate question: when you have a cold, your ears are blocked, what should you do?

Ear congestion is one of the main symptoms of infection entering the human body.

Ignoring such symptoms means putting yourself at risk of further spreading the infection.

Let's consider what to do if your ears are blocked due to a cold. Knowledge of the provoking factors of pathology, as well as how to treat the ear for a cold, will help eliminate inflammation and eliminate ringing and noise in a short time.

Why do ears get stuffy when you have a cold?

The cause of ear pain during a cold is the close proximity of the ENT organs to each other. The inflammatory process and abundant accumulation of mucus lead to deterioration of the patency of the Eustachian tube.

This organ serves as a kind of connecting link between the nasopharynx and the ear canal, and is very vulnerable to infectious diseases.

Obstruction of the Eustachian tube creates a feeling of vacuum, which causes an unpleasant feeling of congestion.

Mucus serves as a favorable environment for the proliferation of bacteria penetrating from the nasal cavity.

Penetration of pathogenic mucus occurs when sneezing, coughing or when trying to blow your nose. Improper nasal rinsing can also cause the infection to spread.

Characteristic symptoms

Severe ear congestion during a cold is often accompanied by the following symptoms:

hum, ringing and noise radiating to the temporal region;
headache and feeling of heaviness;
elevated temperature;
tingling sensation in the ear area, discomfort when swallowing and chewing;
pain radiates to the cheek or temple;

numbness in various parts of the face;
hyperemia of the skin around the ears;
increased pain when pressing on the sink;
hearing loss.

If the infection reaches the middle ear, otitis media develops. It is characterized by severe pain and copious discharge containing pus.

To avoid such consequences, severe ear congestion from a cold must be diagnosed and treated in time. Source: nasmorkam.net

Diagnostics. Which doctor should I contact?

Ear pain that occurs due to a cold requires contacting an otolaryngologist (ENT). If the disease is accompanied by a significant increase in temperature, severe headache, dizziness, or symptoms of general intoxication, you need to consult an infectious disease specialist or therapist.

Various examinations and tests are used for diagnosis.

The doctor performs an external examination of the ears and palpates them in order to preliminary determine the affected area.

If otitis or eustachitis is suspected, a blood test, audiometry, otoscopy, and bacterial culture of ear discharge are performed to determine the causative agent of the inflammatory process.

If there is no hearing loss or it is slight, audiometry is not prescribed. If your ears cannot hear after a cold, this diagnostic procedure allows you to identify the cause in time and avoid hearing loss.

Otoscopy is an examination of the ear opening to assess the effectiveness of its functioning and determine the severity and extent of inflammation.

This is one of the most informative manipulations. It does not cause pain and is harmless for patients of any age.

For long-term otitis media (chronic form), an x-ray of the temporal bone may be prescribed. If your ears hurt due to a cold, you also need to determine the degree of patency of the Eustachian tube.

Clogged ears due to a cold: treatment

Treatment of ear congestion due to colds, rhinitis or flu primarily involves eliminating the underlying causes that caused this phenomenon.

However, this does not mean that after recovery from an infectious disease, congestion will completely stop.

Its symptoms may continue to bother the patient in the future, and in severe cases cause more dangerous consequences.

The main treatment for stuffy ears is the use of various drops and compresses to relieve pain and inflammation, as well as the prescription of remedies that help improve the body's defenses.

Drug treatment

Drug treatment includes the following medications:

antiviral drugs that destroy infections and viruses that cause influenza, acute respiratory infections, pharyngitis (Tamiflu, Arbidol, Amiksin, Ribavirin);
vasoconstrictor drugs that reduce swelling in the nose, thereby increasing the lumen in the opening of the auditory tube (Naphthyzin, Nazol, Noxprey, Nazivin);
ear drops to relieve swelling and pain (Otipax, Otinum, Garazon).

Before deciding what to drop, you need to carefully read the instructions, since many drops have limitations and contraindications. The final decision is made by the doctor.

Effective drops in the ears can remove swelling and reduce pain, destroy pathogenic microorganisms located inside the organ, prevent further spread of infection, and improve the general condition of the patient.

Otipax

These are drops that are a clear or yellow oily liquid with a slight odor of alcohol.

The active components of the product are lidocaine and phenazone, which have an analgesic and anti-inflammatory effect.

Under their influence, the mucus is liquefied and removed to the outside. The usual dose is 3-4 drops in each ear canal 2-3 times a day; for children the dosage is slightly lower. The drug can be used during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

Otinum

The drug is popular because it has a quick effect. The active substances, salicylate and glycerol, destroy infections and viruses, relieve inflammation. It is not prescribed for purulent otitis, bronchial asthma, pregnancy and children under one year of age.

If your ears are blocked during a cold, the number of drops for treatment is 2-3 three times a day. The dosage can be increased if the patient’s condition is serious, but only the attending physician has the right to do this.

Prevention

Preventive measures for ear congestion and headaches include:

timely treatment of the underlying disease;
hardening;
avoiding hypothermia;
wearing a headdress in the autumn-winter period;
timely visit to the doctor and undergo examinations.

There are many reasons for headaches and ear congestion. The constant use of symptomatic drugs not only does not cure the disease, but also aggravates it, because the pathological process continues to develop. That is why it is important to consult a doctor when the first signs of illness appear.

First aid for congestion

The situation when the nose and ears are stuffy causes a lot of discomfort. How can you get rid of unpleasant symptoms to make you feel better? What to do when your nose can't breathe?

The most effective and proven methods:

Ear congestion due to runny nose

Clear the nasal passages as much as possible of accumulated mucus and dirt. To do this, just blow your nose well and rinse both sinuses with a weak hypertonic solution (you can use sodium chloride purchased at a pharmacy) using a large syringe or rubber bulb. If your ears become blocked during or after the procedure, it is recommended to temporarily stop rinsing. Then vasoconstrictor drops will come to the rescue.
Normalize the pressure in the Eustachian tube. To do this, you need to firmly press the wings of your nose with your fingers and try to exhale air. After a slight click in the ears, perform swallowing movements several times. This method will help relieve ear congestion for a short period before visiting a specialist.
Blowing out the ears. This procedure should be performed according to the Toynbee method. To perform it, you need to take water into your mouth, hold your nose tightly and make several swallowing movements. You can repeat the procedure until the congestion goes away. The essence of the method is to normalize the pressure in the Eustachian tube due to pressure during swallowing.
Inhalations. A good effect is achieved due to the fact that the medications evenly irrigate the nasal mucosa and also have minimal negative effects on it. It is recommended to carry out inhalations at least 3 times in 24 hours, after rinsing the nasal passages with saline solution. It is forbidden to carry out inhalations when the body temperature rises.
Massage the ear and nose area for 15–20 minutes. Do not perform massaging movements at high temperatures or enlarged lymph nodes.

Rinsing the nose for congestion

Why does the back of my head hurt and my ears ring?

Occipital pain, supplemented by tinnitus, can occur as a result of pathological causes:

Osteochondrosis – deformed vertebrae or discs quite often compress the arterial vessels that supply the brain with oxygen. As a result, the brain structures experience oxygen starvation, which manifests itself in the form of dizziness, weakness, tinnitus and pulsation in the back of the head.
Hypertension - against the background of an excessive increase in blood pressure and the development of occipital pain, the patient experiences tinnitus, dizziness, flashing dark spots and spots in the eyes, nausea and vomiting, after which the condition improves slightly for a short time.
Multiple sclerosis – headaches and tinnitus are additional signs of the disease. Pathology is distinguished by a number of other symptoms - weakness, disorders of the motor system, loss of coordination and memory.
Meningitis is a serious infectious disease of brain tissue with severe symptoms. Excruciating occipital pain is aggravated by high fever, tinnitus, weakness, and in severe cases, delirium and convulsions.
– pressing occipital pain, nausea, tinnitus, visual disturbances develop with the pressure of the liquor fluid on the brain structures. Most often, symptoms appear after being in a horizontal position for a long time (for example, in the morning or after daytime rest).
Atherosclerosis - due to cholesterol plaques that form on the walls of blood vessels during this disease, blood does not fully enter the brain and oxygen starvation of its structures occurs. Symptoms characteristic of this condition are increasing pulsation in the back of the head, tinnitus, weakness, and dizziness.

If you identify symptoms characteristic of the diseases described, you need to go to the doctor, get examined and, if the diagnosis is confirmed, begin treatment.