Articles
Rhinitis medicamentosa - a consequence of using vasoconstrictor medications
The main symptom of rhinitis medicamentosa is persistent or rapidly recurring nasal congestion, which forces a person to use vasoconstrictor drops or sprays more and more often. After each application, nasal breathing temporarily improves, but the swelling then returns, often becoming more severe than it was initially, while the duration of the medication’s effect gradually shortens. Secondary manifestations...
Contact dermatitis of the ear canal — itching, redness and swelling after earphones, hearing aids or ear drops
Contact dermatitis of the ear canal is an inflammatory reaction of the skin of the external auditory canal that occurs after direct contact with an irritant or allergen. The first symptoms are usually intense itching, redness, burning, a sensation of dryness or moisture inside the ear, and moderate swelling. Later, scaling, cracks, clear discharge, crusting, a feeling of blockage, and temporary hearing loss due...
Candidal Otomycosis — the Ear Itches and White Curd-Like Discharge Comes from the Ear Canal
Candidal otomycosis is a fungal inflammation of the external auditory canal, most characteristically associated with severe itching, white or cream-colored curd-like discharge, a sensation of moisture, and a blocked ear. Moderate pain or burning, skin peeling, tinnitus, and reduced hearing due to the accumulation of fungal material may also occur. Candida is usually not transmitted from person to person but...
Fungal pharyngitis - symptoms, self-diagnosis and integrative treatment
Fungal pharyngitis is an inflammatory lesion of the oropharyngeal mucosa, most commonly associated with excessive growth of yeast-like Candida fungi. It is usually not an infection acquired from outside the body, but rather an overgrowth of the body's own opportunistic flora after antibiotics, the use of inhaled or systemic glucocorticosteroids, in diabetes mellitus, immunodeficiency, severe dry mouth, smoking,...
Maxillary Sinusitis - Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment
Maxillary sinusitis is inflammation of the mucous membrane of the maxillary sinus. It usually occurs together with inflammation of the nasal cavity, so the medically more precise term is maxillary rhinosinusitis. The most characteristic symptoms are nasal congestion, thick discharge, mucus draining down the back of the throat, pressure or pain in the cheek and below the eye, reduced sense of smell, headache and...
Viral Pharyngitis — Symptoms, Self-Diagnosis and Integrative Treatment
Viral pharyngitis is an acute inflammation of the pharyngeal mucosa that most commonly develops with rhinovirus, adenovirus, coronavirus, influenza, parainfluenza, enterovirus and other respiratory infections. Viruses are transmitted mainly through droplets of saliva and nasal secretions, contaminated hands and objects, after which they infect the epithelium of the nasopharynx and oropharynx. The first signs are...
Bacterial Pharyngitis — Symptoms, Self-Diagnosis and Integrative Treatment
Bacterial pharyngitis is an acute inflammation of the pharyngeal mucosa, most commonly associated with group A β-hemolytic streptococcus and less commonly with group C and G streptococci, Fusobacterium necrophorum, Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and other bacteria. The disease usually begins suddenly with pronounced pain when swallowing, fever, redness and swelling of the pharynx, enlarged...
Atopic dermatitis of the external ear — dryness, cracks, itching, and recurrent inflammation of the ear canal
Atopic dermatitis of the external ear is a chronic recurrent inflammation of the skin of the auricle, the fold behind the ear, the entrance to the external auditory canal, and its skin lining. The main manifestations are persistent itching, pronounced dryness, flaking, redness, a feeling of tightness, small painful cracks, and excoriations from scratching. During a flare-up, the skin may swell, become weepy, and...
Vasomotor Rhinitis: Causes of Persistent Nasal Congestion
Vasomotor rhinitis is a chronic, noninfectious and nonallergic disorder of the regulation of the nasal mucosa. In modern classifications, it is more commonly referred to as idiopathic nonallergic rhinitis or nonallergic rhinopathy. Its main manifestations are persistent or intermittent nasal congestion, watery discharge, mucus dripping down the back of the throat, sneezing attacks, reduced sense of smell, a...
Aspergillus Otomycosis - Black or Gray Discharge, Severe Itching, and a Plugged-Ear Sensation
Aspergillus otomycosis is a fungal infection of the external auditory canal caused by molds of the genus Aspergillus. Its most recognizable symptoms are severe itching, a sensation of a plug or foreign body in the ear, ear fullness, and reduced hearing. The discharge may be gray, brownish, or almost black. Small black specks are particularly characteristic of Aspergillus niger, although the color of the discharge...