sudden diminished hearing in one ear

[jennnyy]

hello everyone.
my name's kyle, and i recently (in the last 12 hours) had a sudden loss of hearing in my right ear. however, it's not complete loss, it's more like diminished. everything is very muffled. almost like i'm underwater. i can't recall ever having any ear infections (other than as an infant, i'm sure) and it's beginning to worry me. i do listen to loud music, as i am a musician, but there is no ringing or discomfort. it's simply as if there's water in my ear, that won't drain. so, to me, it sounds like a simple ear infection. i have Airborne, and sinus medicines, and am not sure what will help. i've gone in gently with Q-tips and cleaned out my ear, and it's not draining, bleeding, or anything unnatural. so i was just wondering, is this something i should be concerned about, or will it just go away on its own?
also, i have had a cough for quite sometime, on and off, so perhaps it's bacteria spread to my inner ear?
thanks,
kyle

 

[KatrinaP]

You could have an infection, or you could have a swolen/irritated eustacian tube. Try a decongestant to see if it makes things better. I've had problems where sound will go muffled in my right ear, and it will feel like it's full of fluid. Often but not always, it's accompanied by loud ringing. Go to the doctor if it won't resolve. If it's a real infection they'll give you antibiotics. Mine wasn't an infection so they put me on low dose prednisone to reduce the swelling, and in a few days my hearing was back to normal.