Earwax - development, function and safe removal

How to properly and safely remove unpleasant ear wax

Earwax (cerumen) performs important functions to maintain the health of the body. Yet many people are unaware of what it serves and where it is made. Again and again, the question arises, how much of the yellow-brown secretion can be effectively but gently eliminated as possible. This article is intended to give an insight into the function and composition of the secretion and to describe how proper care can be counteracted by natural means of ear canal obstruction of the ear canals. You will also learn what to do once an earwax plug has formed and how you can distinguish the healthy cerumen from morbid ear discharge.

contents

• How to properly and safely remove unpleasant ear wax
• Synonyms
• Earwax serves for self-cleaning
• Ohrenschmalzpfropf
• Removal of ear wax plugs from the ENT specialist
• Gentle ear care
• Dissolve earwax with natural home remedies
• ear discharge

Synonyms

Earwax, Cerumen, Cerumen, Zeruminalpfropf, Cerumen obturans, Zerumenpfropf, Cerumenpfropf, Epidermispfropf.

Earwax serves for self-cleaning

When earwax, referred to in the medical context as cerumen, it is a body-own secretions, which serves the self-cleaning of the ears. Earwax is a yellowish-brown color with a bitter taste and is produced in specialized sebaceous glands of the external auditory meatus. It is composed of sweat gland secretions, hairs, sebum, dandruff and contaminants.

Earwax performs important functions, such as removing dust, dirt, dead skin cells and foreign bodies from the ear. (Image: a3701027 / fotolia.com)

Its task is to use small moving hairs to transport foreign objects and contaminants from the ear to the outer ear, where they are then removed when washing, showering or bathing with water.

The composition of the bitter secretion, which spreads to the mucous membranes of the ear canal, prevents the spread of invading viruses, fungi or bacteria. If this self-cleaning mechanism is compromised, an earwax plug will form, which can lead to hearing impairment if it displaces the ear canal.

Ohrenschmalzpfropf

If earwax is excessively produced or obstructed as it is transported away, an earwax plug forms, which, when grown and hardened, can affect hearing. The migration of the cerumen is usually hampered by the attempt to clean the ears with cotton swabs or towel tabs. The secretion is pushed back to the eardrum into the ear canal, which can lead not only to conductive hearing loss, dull feeling and ear noises, but also to injuries and inflammations (otitis externa) in the ear canal.

Often occurs a sudden deafness after hair washing, showering or bathing, because the Ohrschmalzpfropf (medical "cerumen obturans") by the contact with the water strongly swells.

Removal of ear wax plugs from the ENT specialist

The earwax plug removal is usually done by an ENT specialist. First, with the otoscope, a special ear microscope, the graft sighted to ensure the diagnosis. To protect the sensitive eardrum, the mechanical removal of the earwax plug can be carried out under microscopic control with a hook instrument or with an ear irrigation. If holes in the eardrum are known, the conditioner should be avoided.

In ear irrigation, lukewarm water is introduced into the ear with a syringe to flush out the plug. By way of preparation, it is softened with lipid-soluble agents (e.g., glycerin, paraffin oil, or pharmaceutical preparations).

With the help of an ear syringe annoying earwax can be easily rinsed out. (Image: Jenny Sturm / fotolia.com)

Gentle ear care

For a gentle ear care, which is to prevent excessive accumulation of earwax, is the regular cleaning at home, which can be supplemented by applications of natural medicine. If the tympanic membrane is intact, ear flushing with water is carried out once a week using an ear syringe, which is available from pharmacies.

The head should be kept tilted to the side, while the clean lukewarm water is injected against the back wall of the ear canal. If dizziness occurs temporarily after flushing, this may be due to the wrong water temperature, which causes irritation in the organ of balance. The water temperature should be about body temperature.

A special form of Ohrenschmalzpfropfs represents the so-called Epidermispfropf dar. This can arise in chronic auditory canal inflammation and contains dander and earwax. Danger: Because the epidermal plug can become rock-hard, it should be removed by a specialist so as not to injure the ear canal and bones.

Dissolve earwax with natural home remedies

If too much earwax is produced, the onset of grafting by natural emollients and the use of ear candles can be prevented. The emollient and fat dissolving power of high quality oils (e.g., almond oil or walnut oil) can be combined with essential oils from medicinal plants which prevent irritation and have anti-inflammatory effects (e.g., chamomile, geranium, tea tree)..

After several hours of exposure to the herbal oil, the use of an ear candle can further enhance the effect of liquefying the earwax, thereby providing support for the self-cleaning mechanism.

Safely removing ear wax is also possible through a steam bath with chamomile flowers, which keeps each ear for a few minutes. This method has proven to be effective for bringing solid earwax into motion.

The ophthalmological examination can determine if there is a disease-related increase in earwax production. (Image: Jürgen Fälchle / fotolia.com)

ear discharge

Earwax, which is produced in each healthy person in varying amounts for the self-cleaning of the ears, is to be distinguished from the outflow of the ears, as it occurs in ear diseases. Repeated discharge of malodour, for example, associated with hearing loss, suggests a chronic otitis or ear ulcer.

Purulent fluid in the ear with earache and swelling of the lymph nodes indicates an acute inflammatory event and belongs to specialist treatment (ENT).

If the secretion is amber or even bloody, severe ear infections or skull injuries can be expected. In case of previous injury, an emergency doctor should be called immediately. (jvs, last updated on 20.2.2018)