Ear Care & Advice

There are 5 common symptoms you may be experiencing if you think you have a build up of wax.

1. A feeling of fullness in the ear
2. Sudden partial hearing loss
3. Ear pain
4. Tinnitus (which is a ringing or buzzing in the ear)
5. Dizziness

It is important to seek medical help if you have impacted ear wax. Not only is it irritating, but it can also lead to infections so our advice is to see a doctor to avoid this.

The ear canal produces wax as part of the ear’s protective mechanism. Too much wax will block the sound waves from getting to the ear drum causing deafness and a very unpleasant feeling of blockage. 

In order to relieve these symptoms and protect the delicate structures, the safest and most effective way to have wax removed is with Microsuction.

We always use the most advanced, comprehensive digital microscope because this gives magnification, depth perception and excellent illumination which are all essential for safe and complete removal of wax.

You may not think you need to pay too much attention to keeping your ears ‘healthy’ but these tips below will help to minimise ear wax building up.

1. DO NOT USE Q-tips / Cotton Buds to clean your ears.   They can damage the wall of the ear canal and increase the likelihood of an ear infection. They will also cause impaction of the wax by pushing it further into the canal resulting in a blocked ear with reduced hearing.
2. Regular use of Olive oil e.g. Earol, olive oil in a spray bottle, will help to keep the wax soft and help it to migrate out of the ear.  We are a local stockist of Earol and can be purchased from our clinic.
3. If you suffer with dry skin or eczema moisturising around the outside of the ear with an unscented moisturiser (e.g E45) will help to minimise any dry skin from falling into the canal and causing irritation.
4. The risk of infection in the ear can be minimised by keeping your ears dry when showering/washing hair. You can use commercially purchased plugs from our clinic or alternatively you can use a cotton wool ball and a smear of Vaseline (dispose of it each time it is used).

In general, the ear is described as having three sections; the outer ear, middle ear and inner ear. 

All parts of the hearing system need to be working in order to hear well.

A loss of hearing happens when something in the hearing system stops the sound information from reaching the brain.

There are different terms to describe the hearing loss depending on which part of the hearing system is affected.

Conductive hearing loss refers to conditions of the outer and middle ear. The inner ear is working, but the sound vibrations cannot reach it effectively.

Sensorineural hearing loss refers to a condition of the inner ear or nerves. Even though sound vibrations are being passed to the inner ear, the hair cells are missing, damaged or cannot transmit the information to the brain.

Mixed hearing loss has both conductive and sensorineural factors.

Conductive hearing loss may have a simple cause, such as an earwax blockage. In these cases, the hearing problem goes away when the blockage is removed.

Glue ear is a common cause of conductive hearing loss in children. It often clears on its own but may need treatment if it continues to cause problems over a number of months.

Hearing aids are an effective option for people with conductive hearing loss. As well as conventional hearing aids, there are implanted devices that are designed for people with conductive hearing loss.

For certain types of conductive hearing loss, surgery may be possible to repair the sound pathway from the outer ear to the inner ear and improve hearing. However, many ear operations are to treat and prevent ear diseases and do not improve hearing.