- Oh, something is ringing in my ear. What would it be for?
- By the rain, probably… Actually, you have a cork in your ear.
- What to do?
- Wash your ears!
Have you often participated in such dialogues? The advice to wash your ears is, of course, good, but still it is out of place here.
If you periodically experience tinnitus, stuffy ears, and sometimes you hear your own voice echoing, then most likely you have a wax plug in your ear. What to do in this case? Of course, see a doctor. The specialist will ask you a few questions about your previous diseases, clarify whether you have encountered a similar problem before, and after understanding the symptoms and medical history for yourself, he will begin to remove the cork.
Physicians often face complaints from patients that they have a wax plug in their ear. What to do in this case, they are also well aware. To remove the cork, one of two methods is most often used - either with a special probe and a hook, or by washing. How exactly the ENT will act depends on the type of ear plug -how dry it is, and also on the presence of inflammatory processes in the patient's ear. For example, if there are such processes, and a person has suffered or is suffering from ear pain, then it is not worth resorting to washing the ears, since the liquid, once in the ear canal, will provoke the further development of the inflammatory process. It is possible that the case will end in suppuration. That is why doctors, answering the question: "What should I do if there is a cork in my ear?" - do not recommend trying to wash it out of the ear canal yourself.
The doctor in this case does this: he takes a syringe filled with warm saline, pulls the patient's auricle up and slightly to the side. Then, with a strong jet directed at a certain angle, the cork is washed out of the ear, and the remaining liquid is carefully removed with swabs.
But it also happens that a person faces such a problem at a time when a visit to the doctor is impossible for objective reasons. For example, he is on a trip, or the traffic jam was felt on the weekend. You can try to deal with the problem yourself, just be careful. So, for example, it is not recommended to try to clean the ear canal with cotton swabs. And do not pay attention to the fact that they are popularly called sticks for ears. You will only tamp the sulfur with these sticks, making the cork even more dense. By the way, these sticks are often the reason that a plug forms in the ear. What can be done? You can buy special candles for the ears at the pharmacy, or if there are no pharmacies nearby, try to makethem on their own. To do this, a sheet of paper is folded into a narrow tube. If there is wax or paraffin, then soak it two-thirds of the length with a molten mass. Lie on your side with the problem ear up. Insert into it the end of the tube that you did not dip in paraffin, and set fire to the opposite. Yes, it’s hard to do it on your own, so the presence of an assistant is desirable. But, in extreme cases, you can adapt and carry out this procedure alone. The main thing is to keep the straw strictly vertical, and make sure that the fire does not get too close to your hand and head. This is how our ancestors got rid of the problem called "plug in the ear." What to do if there is no wax or paraffin? Cotton wool soaked in alcohol or vodka works well. Your assistant places it on the top edge of the same paper tube and sets it on fire.
Alcohol burns rapidly, the pressure in the tube itself drops, and all the dirt accumulated in the ear rushes into it, since the second end of the tube fits snugly into the ear canal. Often, after cleaning their ears with candles, people are horrified by looking at what was in their ears. Yes, the picture is not happy, but now your ear is cleared.
