Ear wax / removal

[audission]

How significant is ear wax in relation to equalising ears?

I'm off on a diving holiday soon and I really want to ensure everything is absolutely perfect... wondering whether getting my ears syringed would be worthwhile, just in case (I've never had it done before, so they're probably pretty clogged.... uhmmm... nice.)

Also, are there any easy treatments for doing this at home?

:huh:

 

[Wildcard]

There are commercial ear wax Tx you can buy over the counter if it realy is an issue. Just dont fall for the ear candles. Im sure someone will jump in and say they work but I tested them myself and it's bunk.
Keep some psudafed around if you have sticky ears, works great. Just don't take it too far in advance. 12 hr kind will work well for diving situations. And before some expert OW diver jumps in, even DAN says it seems to help.

 

[427Dave]

How significant is ear wax in relation to equalising ears?

I'm off on a diving holiday soon and I really want to ensure everything is absolutely perfect... wondering whether getting my ears syringed would be worthwhile, just in case (I've never had it done before, so they're probably pretty clogged.... uhmmm... nice.)

Also, are there any easy treatments for doing this at home?

:huh:

I have had a ear wax problem for years. Before I start a vacation I get my ears check by my doctor and flushed out if needed. I also have a wax removal kit that I got from the drug store that works great and I use. I has a blue bulb and some wax softner.

From experience I can tell you that it hurts like h*** to have a problem when diving. I ruined a few days of diving in St. Martin because I did not get them cleaned out before I left. It is like the old saying better safe than sorry!

So get your doctor to look and have a great trip:huh:. It will also help flying!

 

[divad]

I had one so clogged up that I thought it was infected. They just put "Debrox" in it, cleaned it out for a hundred bucks and admonished me never to use Q-tips inside my ear again. So, you should buy some "Debrox" or something similar at the drugstore for a couple of bucks, use it routinely, and quit sticking Q-tips in your ears even if it does feel good. Apparently Q-tips just repeatedly smeared the wax up against my eardrum until it formed a solid wall.

 

[fisherdvm]

The MAJOR # 1 cause of impaced ear wax, in my practice, is the use of a Qtip to "clean out my ear".

Your best bet in cleaning out your ear is to see an FP doctor ... YOu might not have any was buildup, or that the wedge that's there might be cement hard and dried....

I often have patients use drops to soften up that core before blasting the softened wax away a week later with a pressurized syringe tip.

But the majority of the cases, we can just scrape out the hardened wax with a small ear curette (not to be done at home!!!).

 

[427Dave]

I had one so clogged up that I thought it was infected. They just put "Debrox" in it, cleaned it out for a hundred bucks and admonished me never to use Q-tips inside my ear again. So, you should buy some "Debrox" or something similar at the drugstore for a couple of bucks, use it routinely, and quit sticking Q-tips in your ears even if it does feel good. Apparently Q-tips just repeatedly smeared the wax up against my eardrum until it formed a solid wall.

DO NOT USE Q-TIPS!!!! That was one of my problems, the trip to the emergency room after rupturing my ear drum with a Q-Tip was very painfull!!!!!!!! They let me sit there for awhile also as it was not life threating. The emergency room doctor did not have much pitty and asked me "Didn't your mother ever teach you to not put anything smaller than your elbow into your ear"!!!! (I was 57 years old)

 

[shakeybrainsurgeon]

The rule I learned in medical school --- never insert anything smaller than your elbow into your own ear canal

 

[shakeybrainsurgeon]

sorry, someone already mentioned that rule

as Roseanne Rosannadanna said "never mind"

 

[cerich]

if you do get your ears cleaned before the trip be aware that your ear canal will have less protection against infections for awhile. It may be a good idea to use a product like swimmers ear post dive as prophylactic measure.

Maybe one of the docs could recomend a better one.

 

[shoredivr]

Yes, Cerich, I second that about prophylactic measures. Had my ears cleaned a week before diving, and perhaps coincidentally got my first ever ear infection - which required a trip to emergency (since it was a holiday weekend of course).