Ear Wax Treatments We Don’t Recommend

Ear Wax Treatments

Home remedies

Home remedies can be tempting however at best these can be ineffective, at worst they can be extremely dangerous.

If you are suffering with an ear wax removal blockage it is important to seek the help of a professional.

Ear Syringing

When people think of ear wax removal they often think of ear syringing. This is an outdated method which is now rarely used. It was used when ear wax drops were ineffective as the next step. A large metal syringe would pump water in to the ear in an attempt to flush the wax out. The old fashioned metal syringes have been replaced with lower pressure plastic syringes where this procedure is carried out.

This is NOT a method of wax removal we would endorse or recommend

 

Hopi Ear Candles

Hopi ear candles are a form of alternative medicine. Those who practice often claim it to promote good health and wellbeing whilst being effective for wax removal. Hopi ear candles are used in ‘ear coning’ or ‘thermal auricular therapy’. It is thought to have originated with the Hopi Tribe in North America. The Hopi Tribe Council have however repeatedly denied this and requested for their association to be stopped.

There are many complications that can arise from the use of Hopi Ear Candles with the most common being:

• Burning of the face or ears caused by hot beeswax.
• Perforation of Ear Drums caused hot beeswax entering the ear canal.

Other complications that can arise from use of Hopi Ear Candles include:

• Further blockage to the ear canal due to falling wax and soot.
• Higher risk of infection caused by foreign bodies entering the ear canal.
• Further impaction of wax caused by insertion of the candle in to the ear.
• Burns to the hair particularly if flammable hair products are used.
• False belief that the ear wax has been successfully removed when in fact the debris is actually hopi ear candle beeswax and not removed ear wax.

Again, this is NOT a wax removal method we would endorse or recommend. It is typically performed by a non ear professional. There are no clinical inspections of the ear canal before or after the procedure to check for ear health or medical reasons why the procedure should not be performed.