Galley Gossip: Blocked ears – how to ease the pain in flight

You’re on a flight trying to get a little rest when the kid whose been kicking your seat for the last half hour suddenly begins to scream.You do what any normal passenger would do and spin around, shooting the parents an evil look. When that doesn’t work you ring your flight attendant call light and ask the attendant if perhaps she can help, all the while thinking thank God we’re landing soon. What the heck is wrong with that kid!

Blocked ears. Altitude changes increase air pressure as the plane lowers. The change in pressure pushes the eardrum inward. Because children have relatively narrow Eustachian tubes, they may not function as effectively as an adults’, especially if they’re clogged by an inflammation or ear infection. Blocked ears can cause severe pain, dullness in hearing, and can occasionally lead to hearing loss.

What a parent can do

  1. Don’t allow the child to sleep during descent
  2. Find something to suck on; a bottle, pacifier, gum or hard candy
  3. Postpone any future air travel if a cold, sinus infection, or allergy attack is present.
  4. Ignore the jerk seated in front of you.

What to do when your own ears hurt

  1. Steam helps. Many passengers will ask for wads of hot wet paper towels stuffed inside plastic cups that are then placed over the ears. The steam seeps from the cloth through the cup and into the ear. But because so many people have been burned using this technique, flight attendants (at my airline) no longer do this.
  2. Chew gum or constantly swallow or yawn during descent. This allows the muscles in the Eustachian tube to contract and open, equalizing the pressure. When you hear a clicking noise, you’ll know it’s working.
  3. Use a nasal spray or decongestant. When you’re feeling congested, use it a few hours before the flight and also an hour before landing.
  4. Do the Valsalva maneuver. This is the best way to clear clogged ears. Pinch your nose and close your mouth while forcibly exhaling through your nostrils. Continue to do this periodically until landing.Once on the ground do not use Valsalva maneuver.

Are your ears bothering you after a flight? Do what I do and try taking taking a hot steamy shower and drink plenty of hot tea. If plagued with ear pressurization problems, invest in a pair of disposable ear plugs like EarPlanes which can be found online and at local pharmacies in sizes for both adults and children, and don’t leave home without them!

Photo courtesy of TomD

Plane Answers: Breathe Normally?

Welcome to Gadling’s feature, Plane Answers, where our resident airline pilot, Kent Wien, answers your questions about everything from takeoff to touchdown and beyond. Have a question of your own? Ask away!

Dr. Roland asks:

Hello Kent,

I’ve been flying for years and can’t get an answer to my question on the oxygen mask demo given by the flight attendants. Apparently, after you place the mask over your nose and mouth and breath normally–my favorite part–the plastic bag may not inflate. So why have this mask if it may or may not inflate!?

By now, we’ve all heard the flight attendants inform us that the bag on an oxygen mask may or may not inflate. But I really had to stop and think about why this is the case. In fact, since we use a completely different oxygen mask in the cockpit, it was time for a bit of research into the mechanics of a passenger mask.

It turns out that the oxygen flows continuously into your mask from chemically driven ‘oxygen generators’ as opposed to a tank of air. When you exhale, that oxygen would normally spill out the sides of the mask. So the bag is designed to collect the oxygen that isn’t being used while you exhale, which increases the total amount of oxygen available and corrects for irregularities in breathing. It does this with a one-way check valve that prevents the oxygen from leaving the bag and entering the mask while you’re exhaling.

David asks:

When I am flying commercially one thing I hate is the pain in my ears from the pressurization of the aircraft. I know it affects others too so I was wondering if pilots just don’t get it or if it stops happening once you are used to it, or do you just get so used to it that it stops bothering you?

I’ve had one painful encounter with a blocked sinus when I was fifteen, but I’ve never had an issue since I’ve used the valsalva maneuver.

For the climb out, there’s not much you should do except maybe yawn a bit and possibly chew some gum.

It’s mainly during the descent that you’ll need to head off any problems.

To do this, simply plug your nose and blow a bit once you sense that you’re starting down (usually 30 minutes out). Carefully hold your nose and blow gently to pop your ears at least until the airplane starts to slow. You’re home free once the airplane is below 10,000 feet, where the cabin altitude is now at sea level.

This technique should make a big difference for your next flight.

If you still have problems, bring some Afrin (an over the counter nasal decongestant) with you and use it about 45 minutes before descent or anytime you feel some pressure on the way down. I don’t normally like to use Afrin as it causes me to clog up more after a few hours, but it really helps in these temporary situations.

I haven’t run across many pilots with this issue, other than the occasional problem someone might have when flying with a cold. Perhaps it’s something that you get used to.

Do you have a question about something related to the pointy end of an airplane? Ask Kent and maybe he’ll use it for next Friday’s Plane Answers feature.