Ear Cleaning Tip

I had NO clue! Every time I go to our pediatrician he does his routine head to toe check and when he gets to the ears he says "a lot of wax". I then ask the same question "should I be getting more out with the q-tip or cleaning more often?". He answers no EVERY TIME! So on Thursday I couldn't take it anymore and said if there's too much wax but I'm not supposed to get it out then what the hell am I supposed to do or better yet, why are you telling me this every time?! He told me that we're supposed to use the bulb syringe filled with a little water and squirt it into their ears then let it drain. What?!!! No one ever told me this! Anyway, just thought I'd post this in case some of you were as clueless as I was and too embarassed to ask :blush: .

 

I was never told that either ! Our ENT recommended an over the counter ear wax removal drops though.

 

So, did it work??? I'm definitely wanting suggestions about ear wax!

 

No way! I was never told that either and one of my girls has small canals and an issue with a lot of wax. Thanks for the info!!

 

During our last ear Check (i suspected an ear infection) my Ped said that my DS had a lot of hard wax. That it may be itchy or irritating...thus the ear tugging I saw. She said to use Hydrogem perioxide...just a few drops to help soften and loosen the wax. We did it for a week....My son did not enjoy the bubbly action but he did sleep better adn stop the tugging. I never did see any big wax come out but the bubbles would turn the wax color so I now there was action in there.

Cindy

 

my ped told me to put clean water in their ears when giving them a bath, and it really surprised me, too

 

That's good info, I had no clue.

 

QUOTE(Moodyzblu @ Jul 19 2008, 08:55 PM) [snapback]885339[/snapback]
I was never told that either ! Our ENT recommended an over the counter ear wax removal drops though.


What is the name of these drops? One of my boys has a lot of ear wax. It drains easily enough, but he always has gobs of ear wax on the outside of his ear. It's pretty gross. Our doc said the only thing we could do was wipe it away while bathing.

 

Hannah has a lot of wax, I've always just used a wet washcloth to remove what that can get\what I can see. It doesn't seem to bother her so I hadn't asked her pedi. I'm surprised too by the recommendation to put water in her ears - I always thought you wanted to keep water out!! I will try it because we have to do the washcloth thing pretty often and she really hates it. She will hate this too :lol: but maybe it won't have to be done as often!

 

QUOTE(serranoboys @ Jul 19 2008, 08:52 PM) [snapback]885330[/snapback]
I had NO clue! Every time I go to our pediatrician he does his routine head to toe check and when he gets to the ears he says "a lot of wax". I then ask the same question "should I be getting more out with the q-tip or cleaning more often?". He answers no EVERY TIME! So on Thursday I couldn't take it anymore and said if there's too much wax but I'm not supposed to get it out then what the hell am I supposed to do or better yet, why are you telling me this every time?! He told me that we're supposed to use the bulb syringe filled with a little water and squirt it into their ears then let it drain. What?!!! No one ever told me this! Anyway, just thought I'd post this in case some of you were as clueless as I was and too embarassed to ask :blush: .


Thank you! I always ask the pedi what to do about the wax & she just says that it's natural protection for their ears. That one wants the wax there as it helps against ear infections?! Ds has had two occurances with ear infections with the earwax there. I am now using a washcloth to clean their ears, but it's like that movie where the guy shaves his beard & it grows back in seconds..well the same with the earwax!

I don't know about squirting water in their ears? I've had water in my ears via swimming & it's not a pleasant feeling at all! Can't imagine how the twins would react if they got water stuck in their ears...Mmm maybe I'm just too chicken to try...

 

We have been told before to use a couple drops of baby oil in each ear.

 

QUOTE(Joanna G @ Jul 20 2008, 12:44 AM) [snapback]885492[/snapback]
What is the name of these drops? One of my boys has a lot of ear wax. It drains easily enough, but he always has gobs of ear wax on the outside of his ear. It's pretty gross. Our doc said the only thing we could do was wipe it away while bathing.

The drops are called Debrox...over the counter my ENT has told us to use them on both boys. They have had tubes twice, adenoids removed and sinus endoscopy surgery in the past 8 months. We have never been told to bulb syringe water into the ear.

 

I never knew any of this.

I feel quite embarassed. I have been using q-tips just on the outside. They actually love it - my son almost purrs to get his ears cleaned. :unsure:

 

I remember my mom washing my ears that way when I was a child. She stopped when I was old enough to use Q-tips safely on my own. It actually feels kinda neat. Just make sure you get the ears nice and dry afterward.

 

My pedi said there's nothing we can do to get the wax out, but I'm going to ask the ENT about it at our appointment at the end of the month.

 

Here's my PSA, Q-tips act like muzzle loaders and should never be put into the ear canal, they simple pack wax further in and can cause hearing loss.

 

The BEST is MINERAL OIL !!! The wax removers can be harmful if left in for too long and not flushed properly. I'm surprised the Pedi recommend it for a child. My dh gets lots of wax and we tried the wax remover on him and then later tried the mineral oil and it worked sooooo much better. You can just put 2 drops in each ear before bed and yes it will drain out on the pillow. You could warm it a bit in warm water to make it feel better going in. If you do that for a week every night you will be amazed. And so much safer and likely cheaper too.

heather

 

QUOTE
Here's my PSA, Q-tips act like muzzle loaders and should never be put into the ear canal, they simple pack wax further in and can cause hearing loss.


That's what I'd always heard too... Confused that a pedi would tell you to use q-tips. :huh: