Earwax: When to Worry?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor II Le Thanh Cam - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital. He has 15 years of experience in diagnosing & treating pediatric diseases, having worked at Da Nang Hospital and Danang Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology. His strength is in the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric pathologies, resuscitation, pediatric emergency.

Earwax is a substance that protects the ear from dirt, foreign objects, even organisms. However, there are cases where children have abnormally large amounts of earwax and create dangerous problems for their health. Excess earwax can harden and block a child's ear canal.

1. When does earwax become a problem?

Normally, the ear will secrete a substance called earwax. Earwax can be dry, wet, or hard. It is a substance intended to protect the ear against dirt, foreign objects, even organisms. Earwax coats the ear canal to protect the ear canal from water-induced irritation. Normally, earwax is removed naturally. However, some people may have unusually large amounts of earwax and cause problems because excess earwax can harden and block the ear canal.
Abnormal accumulation of earwax will cause earwax infection. When the ear loses the ability to clean itself, the earwax is abnormal and adheres to the skin of the ear canal, accumulating very quickly and in abundance in the ear canal. Abnormally many earwax can make children uncomfortable, hearing loss, uncomfortable tinnitus feeling, hearing loss or hearing loss... Besides, earwax plugs make children hear ringing sounds or other noises. explainable; your child has itching, discharge, or unpleasant odors in or near the ear canal.
At this time, cleaning the baby's ears to remove excess earwax should be done carefully and cautiously because it can cause more serious damage to the ear.

2. How to properly remove earwax for children?

Parents and family members are absolutely not allowed to arbitrarily pick their baby's ears with a double-ended cotton-wrapped plastic stick, fingers, or remove earwax with other metal tools such as pins, pencil tips or Paperclips.... You think these tools help clean the ear and remove earwax, but are actually inserting the earwax deeper and turning it into a cap that seals the eardrum, causing scratches causing damage. Bacterial infections cause swelling and pain in the ear canal and can cause tearing of the outer ear canal, or perforation of the eardrum when the child struggles due to not being fixed in the correct position.
To properly remove earwax for your baby painlessly and safely, you should only:
Use a thin, soft cotton towel to gently absorb around the earlobe for your child; Twist one corner of the scarf gently, slowly bring it deep inside your baby's ear, and continue twisting. The earwax will follow the twist of the cotton towel and come out. The soft nature of the towel will not harm the baby's ear membranes and the earwax will still be cleaned. When the baby's ear is scratched or especially when there is an otitis media, parents do not use earwax or any other earwax to pick the baby's ear, it may cause pain and adversely affect the ear. little.
However, if the baby's earwax is abundant and difficult to remove, the mother needs to soften the earwax with mineral oil or glycerin before picking the baby's ear. You can also buy over-the-counter ear cleaners, such as Debrox Ear Drops or Murine Ear Drops.

3. How to clean children's ears every day?

For babies under 36 months old: Parents daily use a soft towel soaked in a little warm water to gently wipe the baby's outer ear; For babies aged 36 months and older: Need to clean the outside of the ear and take the child to a medical facility or an otolaryngology hospital so that the doctor can safely clean the ear when the baby has wax. ears too much.

4. Unusual earwax in children when to see a doctor?

There are cases of abnormally many earwax for a long time causing thin inflammation or ulceration of the skin of the outer ear canal. In these cases, the child will feel a lot of pain in the ear and when removing the earwax, it will be much more painful than the case where the outer ear canal has not been inflamed, sometimes after removing the earwax, the child will see bleeding in the ear. The common symptom is that the baby will cry very loudly. If your child has earwax, you should not take your child's earwax at home because you can't remove it yourself, but it also causes more damage to the outer ear.
In the case of abnormally large amounts of earwax, which hardens too much, you should still go to an Ear - Nose - Throat specialist to get earwax plugs. The doctor will take out the soft earwax for the child, then tell the caregiver to spray again so that the earwax inside can absorb the medicine and soften, then make an appointment for the next time.
In particular, even after the child's disease has been cured, the mother should not wash the baby's ears regularly, for children with abnormally large amounts of earwax, they should only wash their ears once a month. If more than that, you are washing away the earwax that protects the eardrum and this is detrimental to the child's development.
As a key area of ​​Vinmec Health system, Pediatrics Department always brings satisfaction to customers and is highly appreciated by industry experts with:
Gathering a team of top doctors and nurses in Pediatrics : consists of leading experts with high professional qualifications (professors, associate professors, doctorates, masters), experienced, worked at major hospitals such as Bach Mai, 108.. Doctors All doctors are well-trained, professional, conscientious, knowledgeable about young psychology. In addition to domestic pediatric specialists, the Department of Pediatrics also has the participation of foreign experts (Japan, Singapore, Australia, USA) who are always pioneers in applying the latest and most effective treatment regimens. . Comprehensive services: In the field of Pediatrics, Vinmec provides a series of continuous medical examination and treatment services from Newborn to Pediatric and Vaccine,... according to international standards to help parents take care of their baby's health from birth to childhood. from birth to adulthood Specialized techniques: Vinmec has successfully deployed many specialized techniques to make the treatment of difficult diseases in Pediatrics more effective: neurosurgery - skull surgery, stem cell transplantation. blood in cancer treatment. Professional care: In addition to understanding children's psychology, Vinmec also pays special attention to the children's play space, helping them to have fun and get used to the hospital's environment, cooperate in treatment, improve the efficiency of medical treatment.

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