Impacted Cerumen

Impacted cerumen is another name for impacted earwax, cerumen being another name for earwax. Cerumen or earwax protects the ear from various bacterial infections, helps in cleaning and lubrication and also protects the sensitive skin of the ear canal. Excess production of earwax can cause many hearing problems as well can create an unwanted pressure against the eardrum causing a lot of pain. Earwax is produced when there is a mixture of shed layers of skin along with natural dust particles in the air and secretions from the glands present inside the ear. The production of earwax depends upon person to person.

Symptoms of Impacted Cerumen

Speaking of the United States, 2-6% of people suffer from impacted cerumen. Studies have shown that fear, stress and anxiety increases the production of cerumen. Another reason is cleaning earwax with a Q-tip applicator which ends up pushing the cerumen deep till in the ear plugging out the outer ear canal. Impacted cerumen is also visible in people with hearing aid. Mentioned below are the symptoms for the same.

• Hearing Loss: The excess cerumen blocks the sound passage in the ears thereby causing this symptom.
• Pain in the Ear: People seem to experience pain in the ears which is caused due to accumulation and plugging of the earwax near the ear canal.
• Tinnitus: Tinnitus refers to a condition wherein people experience an unusual ringing in the ear, making it one of the symptoms of this condition.
• Itchiness in the Ear: Another symptom is constant itchiness in the ear, at times there might also be a liquid secretion. Constant itchiness along with pain when scratched makes the experience very difficult to deal with.
• Vertigo: Vertigo is the sensation when you get this feeling of being in motion when actually your body is still.
• Cough: Coughing is usually caused due to the itchiness and the pain.

Impacted Cerumen Removal

The process is quite simple and effective. Firstly, the cerumen is softened with the help of oil-based agents like baby oil or olive oil, a few drops of which are poured to the ears and left for a few minutes, allowing the hardened cerumen to soften a little bit. This makes the earwax removal much more easy and comfortable. After the oil based agents have done their work, the earwax is cleaned out using a wet wash cloth and wrapping it around the finger. There are many other solutions which can be used to soften the earwax like Debrox, Murine ear drops, 3% Hydrogen Peroxide solution, Cerumenex, etc., but use them only when prescribed by medical specialist if you don't want to deal with possible allergic reactions.

Treatment for Impacted Cerumen

Although the aforementioned removal technique proves beneficial in most of the cases, however, if this method fails to be of help then medical assistance is the next option. The treatment includes various methods discussed as follows.

• Syringing: Once the accumulated earwax has been softened using an earwax removal solution, syringing enables the wax removal by irrigation. The irrigation solution is kept the same as the body temperature and a syringe is used to slowly and gently stream the water into the ear. The solution flows out through the ear canal taking out the cerumen and other debris along.
• Vacuuming: Vacuuming is another technique which is most effective when done by professionals only. Although there are a lot of home-vacuum kits available in the market, they haven't proved to be of much help, therefore, making this technique most effective when done by a professional.
• Curettage: Cerumen can also be removed with a curette which is another name for a ear pick. This technique works best when in the hands of health professionals. A modified curette is used to dislodge the cerumen and scoop it out. Unlike cotton swabs which push the wax much more deeper into the ear canal, the currete comes with a safety stop to make sure that it is not inserted way too deep.
• Cerumenolysis: Cerumenolysis is a process of removing cerumen, using a solution known as cerumenolytic agent. This solution is put inside the ear canal enabling the plugged wax to come out on its own. If it fails to come out on its own, then methods like syringing and curettage is used.
• Ear Candling: The method of ear candling, although is used to earwax removal, but isn't appreciated or supported by medical practitioners. Under this method, one end of a hollow candle is lighted while the other end is placed in the ear canal. Medical researchers claim this method to be both dangerous and ineffective.

I hope this write-up helped you know about the causes of this condition, what this condition is all about, and the various treatments and removal methods adopted to cure it. To conclude, all I would say is that ears are the doorways to the various sounds in this world. Take care of them as they perceive what is said and help you hear and live among the beautiful sounds in this world.