Chinese man loses hearing temporarily. Reason? A passionate kiss
What's the story
A passionate kiss between a Chinese couple had repercussions they did not anticipate.
The man who kissed his girlfriend for about 10 minutes on Chinese Valentine's Day on August 22 ended up with a ruptured eardrum and loss of hearing.
Reportedly, the couple whose names were not revealed, had kissed beside the West Lake in China's eastern Zhejiang province.
Incident
What exactly happened?
As reported by South China Morning Post, the man claimed that while they were kissing, he experienced pain in his left ear. Besides, he heard a bubbling sound that prevented him from hearing properly.
They rushed to the hospital and were told that his eardrum had been perforated and that it would take about two months for him to recover.
Possible reasons
Possible reasons behind hearing loss
There aren't enough reports to back this case. Reportedly, smooching when coupled with a partner's heavy breathing can result in a hearing imbalance due to changes in pressure inside the ears.
Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Health suggests that a kiss on the external auditory canal can lead to negative pressure inside the ear that can affect the bones in the inner ear.
Earlier cases
Earlier recorded cases
In 2008, a similar incident was reported where a young woman in China partially lost her hearing after sharing an excessively passionate kiss with her boyfriend.
Besides kissing, other activities including fighting, road accidents, diving, and flying can cause a perforated eardrum.
According to the South China Morning Post, a couple lost their hearing while watching TV at home last month in southern China.
Treatment
What to do when you have partial hearing loss?
Earwax blockage in the ear canal and fluid in the middle ear are two of the most frequent causes of conductive hearing loss.
Antibiotics are used to treat middle ear infections caused by bacteria.
It is better to get your ears checked frequently, especially if you work around a lot of noise.
Often medications and surgery are recommended for most types of hearing problems.