--- title: "Plugged Ear Due to Allergies? | Sutter Health" description: "I have spring allergies and this year I have a plugged left ear, which I’m attributing to this. I’ve been using the over-the-counter ear wax remedies which have been working a bit for a day or two, and then my ear becomes plugged again. What can I do?" url: "/ask-an-expert/answers/plugged-ear-due-to-allergies-1051061171" --- 1. Home / 2. Plugged Ear Due to Allergies? # Plugged Ear Due to Allergies? * * * Medically reviewed by - Steven Machtinger, M.D. ## Question I have spring allergies and this year I have a plugged left ear, which I’m attributing to this. I’ve been using the over-the-counter ear wax remedies which have been working a bit for a day or two, and then my ear becomes plugged again. What can I do? ## Answer One of two problems is going on here. Either you have ear wax blocking your ear canal (a condition called cerumen impaction), or your allergies won’t permit your ears to pop, meaning that your eustachian tubes are blocked by allergic nasal swelling. Your primary care physician can examine your ears, nose and throat and quickly determine the cause of your dilemma. You may need to see an otolaryngologist who can safely remove excess ear wax, or you just might need a corticosteroid nasal spray to relieve the eustachian tube swelling. ## Explore related topics Breathing and allergiesEar, nose and throatEars ## Meet our care team Steven Machtinger, M.D. Allergy and Immunology Pediatric Allergy and Immunology ## Related questions View all questions - Health Q&A ### Allergy Treatment I've been plugged up for months with allergies. I've used decongestants, antihistamines, and sinus rinses but nothing seems to help. Any advice? - Health Q&A ### Treatment for Chronic Sinus Infection For 15 years I've gotten sinus infections in spring and fall. Symptoms include sore throat, fever, nasal drainage, respiratory infection, and rash. I've been tested for allergies (negative). Do you have any idea what this is and how I can treat it? - Health Q&A ### Are Two Hearing Aids Needed? I have two hearing aids, but find that sometimes when I use both, the sound is too intense, so I remove one. Are two hearing aids really necessary? - Health Q&A ### Diabetes and Hearing Loss I have diabetes and I read recently that people with this disease have a higher risk of hearing problems. Why would this be, and is there anything I can do to prevent it? - Health Q&A ### Ear Wax Build-Up Treatment How do I get a buildup of wax out of my ears? My friend suggested an over-the-counter product (Deprox). Are there any home remedies that I can use, and what do you think of ear candles? View all questions ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"MedicalOrganization","name":"Sutter Health","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/#medicalorganization","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org","logo":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/static/images/sutter-health-logo.svg","address":{"@type":"PostalAddress","streetAddress":"2200 River Plaza Drive","addressLocality":"Sacramento","addressRegion":"CA","postalCode":"95833","addressCountry":"US"},"areaServed":{"@type":"AdministrativeArea","name":"California"},"sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/SutterHealth","https://www.instagram.com/sutterhealth/","https://x.com/SutterHealth","https://www.youtube.com/sutterhealth","https://www.linkedin.com/company/sutter-health","https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sutter_Health"]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/plugged-ear-due-to-allergies-1051061171#breadcrumblist","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Plugged Ear Due to Allergies?"}]} ``` ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"MedicalWebPage","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/plugged-ear-due-to-allergies-1051061171#medicalwebpage","url":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/plugged-ear-due-to-allergies-1051061171","name":"Plugged Ear Due to Allergies?","description":"One of two problems is going on here. 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What can I do?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","@id":"https://www.sutterhealth.org/ask-an-expert/answers/plugged-ear-due-to-allergies-1051061171#answer","text":"One of two problems is going on here. Either you have ear wax blocking your ear canal (a condition called cerumen impaction), or your allergies won’t permit your ears to pop, meaning that your eustachian tubes are blocked by allergic nasal swelling. Your primary care physician can examine your ears, nose and throat and quickly determine the cause of your dilemma. 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