You're probably very familiar with the effects that a simple cold or allergy can have on your nose and ears. In most cases, you'll have a few days of discomfort. But in certain situations, your cold or allergy may go away, but your ears will continue to be stuffed for days or weeks. Sometimes, the vacuum pressures that are created can cause fluid to accumulate, giving you what's called serous otitis media. Rarely, this fluid can get infected and turn into the classic bacterial infection or otitis media. Fortunately, not too many people have true bacterial infections-most never make it past the vacuum pressure or clear fluid stages.
A Vicious Cycle
If you don't have obstructive sleep apnea, the entire process can come and go within a few days to weeks. However, if you have sleep apnea, due to the additional inflammation that's created, a simple ear or sinus problems can linger for weeks, and sometimes even months for the following reason: Any additional inflammation in the nose or throat causes swelling which can aggravate more frequent obstructions, leading to stomach juices to come up into the throat and nose, including in the area of the eustachian tubes. Furthermore, frequent obstructions and arousals leads to an imbalance of your involuntary nervous system, where your nose is going to be overly sensitive, especially to weather changes (pressure, temperature, and humidity changes). This is called chronic or non-allergic rhinitis.