Ear Piercing Infection

Creating an opening in the ear to insert jewelry, is known as ear piercing. The trend of pierced ears is one of the oldest known types of body piercing and modification. Ear piercing will always be in fashion and people, despite the sharp and excruciating pain, will go get their ears pierced. Though an ear piercing does not cause any health related problems, but it can leave your ears vulnerable to a number of microbial infections in the first few weeks. Such an infection is called an ear piercing infection. This can give you a tough and painful time if left untreated for long. Therefore, it is always better to know the symptoms, causes, treatments and preventive measures for ear piercing infection, so that you can prevent its occurrence in the first place.

Symptoms of Ear Piercing Infections

• Yellow discharge from the piercing
• Irritation, burning and pain in the affected area
• Redness and red bumps
• Swelling of the pierced area.

Causes of Ear Piercing Infections

• Piercing the ear with an unsterilized equipment
• Inserting unsterilized posts into the ear
• Frequently touching the ear lobes with unwashed, dirty hands
• Wearing tight earrings or the clasp may be closed too tightly. Both the cases reduce the blood flow to the ear lobes, leaving them susceptible to infection.
• Presence of a rough area on the earring, that repeatedly scratches the channel and causes an infection.

Treatment for Ear Piercing Infections

• Dip your ear in warm water mixed with non-iodized salt in the ratio of 8:1, for five minutes. Do this four times a day.
• Consult a doctor. Generally, antibiotics are prescribed to treat an ear piercing infection.
• Soak a cotton ball in sea salt or in an Epsom salt solution, and apply on the affected area for five minutes. Do it twice or thrice a day, but never more than four times a day.
• Rotate the earring at least once in a day with clean hands.
• Gently rub an ice-cube on the infected area of the ear lobe. This reduces inflammation.
• Perichondrium is the cartilage found in the ear. Inflammation in the perichondrium is called perichondritis. This causes swelling and terrible pain. Ear piercing infection in cartilage should be treated immediately, otherwise it may involve the entire ear. Perichondritis takes around 6-8 weeks to heal.

Preventive Measures for Ear Piercing Infections

• In case you suffer from fast bleeding, occurrence of keloids, and are vulnerable to infections by staphylococcus, it's better to avoid an ear piercing.
• Get your ears pierced by an expert on ear piercing, who is aware of the sterile techniques to be employed.
• Make sure that the initial post is of 14-carat gold or stainless steel.
• Clasp the earrings loose enough to allow swelling.
• Take out your earrings and clean the area with a diluted solution of alcohol. This dehydrates and kills all the microorganisms, and thus prevents infection. Do it thrice in the first 20-25 days of ear piercing.
• Apply antibiotic cream on the pierced area after a shower and before bedtime, everyday.
• Do not touch your earrings after inserting them for a long time. Fingers are often dirty and may pollute the area.
• Keep your telephone and other such things, clean and sterile to prevent their contaminating your ear lobes.
• Try to sleep with your earrings removed. This will expose the channel to air.

If you find that the swelling and redness have spread beyond the pierced area of the ear, you may develop a mild to high fever, and if there is no improvement in the infection, even after 48 hours of using the treatment method, you should consult a doctor as early as possible. This may indicate a possibility or presence of some other ear complication.