Earwax play an important role in keeping your ears healthy. Also known as cerumen, earwax is a protective sticky material that traps dirt and other foreign substances before they can reach the inner ear. The wax then hardens and naturally makes its way out of the ear, taking the trapped substances with it. Unfortunately, ear wax does not always leave the ear on its own and may get stuck deeper in the ear. When this happens there are both right and wrong ways to help get the wax out.
Cotton Swabs
One of the most popular ways that many people try to remove earwax from the ear is with cotton swabs, commonly sold under the brand name Q-tips. The problem with this method is that as you place the swab in the ear you can actually push the earwax deeper, making the problem worse, states the American Academy of Otolaryngology.
Fingers
Using your fingers is also not advised when trying to clean out your ears. Although it may be tempting to probe your ears with a finger when it feels clogged, this not only can cause the same damage as a cotton swab, but it may also introduce bacteria or fungi that may be present on your fingers into the ear canal.
Oil
A home remedy for helping clean out your ear is prepping the ear wax with an oil, such as mineral oil or baby oil. The Mayo Clinic recommends using an eyedropper to place a few drop of oil in the ear for up to five days. Next, take a rubber bulb filled with warm water and squirt the water gently into the ear, helping to irrigate out the earwax.
Carbamide peroxide (Debrox, Murine Ear Drops)
When home oil use is not enough to soften earwax, your doctor may prescribe medical ear drops such as carbamide peroxide, commonly found under the brand-names Debrox or Murine ear drops. These drops are used every four to eight weeks to prevent ear wax from hardening and blocking the ear canal.
Physician Removal
When all other methods have failed, your doctor may try to manually remove the earwax from your ears. Doctors remove earwax by using a mixture of irrigation with warm water or saline solution and a tool called a curette. Unlike a cotton swab, a curette is a curved instrument that allows the doctor to scoop the earwax out rather than push it further into the ear canal. Any remaining loosened ear wax can then be irrigated out through running solution into the ear. The doctor may also employ suction to help remove earwax from the ear.
