Ear Pain and Possible Infection, Help

[orbiter12]

I've had really bad ear pain for 4-5 days in my left ear.

I went to the GP earlier and the nurse said she doesn't think it's an infection but she can't really see because there is a lot of wax in my left ear.

Do you think I have an infection and will it make my T worse if I don't get it sorted out quickly?

Is it a smart idea to use olive oil to remove the wax if i potentially have inflammation of my eardrum or an infection that the nurse couldn't see? Would this make the infection worse?

One thing after another with tinnitus....

 

[fishbone]

Possibly get a 2nd opinion, maybe see an ENT. Infections can take a long time to clear by themselves, so possibly seeing an ENT might be helpful..

Be blessed

 

[Bill Bauer]

I've had really bad ear pain for 4-5 days in my left ear.

I went to the GP earlier and the nurse said she doesn't think it's an infection but she can't really see because there is a lot of wax in my left ear.

Do you think I have an infection and will it make my T worse if I don't get it sorted out quickly?

Is it a smart idea to use olive oil to remove the wax if i potentially have inflammation of my eardrum or an infection that the nurse couldn't see? Would this make the infection worse?

One thing after another with tinnitus....

Be careful! Many people on this forum got their T as a result of wax removal...

 

[Michael Leigh]

Be careful! Many people on this forum got their T as a result of wax removal...

Very true @Bill Bauer
When earwax is causing discomfort, hearing impairment or tinnitus. It is best to get it removed. Every medical procedure there an element of risk. In most cases, when olive oil eardrops is administered to the ears 3x a day for 7 to 10 days prior to microsuction or irrigation there's rarely a problem. Problems usually occur when eardrops are not used or not for long enough to soften the wax before removal - unfortunately, some health professionals doing the microsuction or irrigation are not being as careful as they should be. Therefore, I advise people to get these procedures done at a GP surgery or hospital, instead of going to a walk in private clinic on the street.

Michael

 

[orbiter12]

Very true @Bill Bauer
When earwax is causing discomfort, hearing impairment or tinnitus. It is best to get it removed. Every medical procedure there an element of risk. In most cases, when olive oil eardrops is administered to the ears 3x a day for 7 to 10 days prior to microsuction or irrigation there's rarely a problem. Problems usually occur when eardrops are not used or not for long enough to soften the wax before removal - unfortunately, some health professionals doing the microsuction or irrigation are not being as careful as they should be. Therefore, I advise people to get these procedures done at a GP surgery or hospital, instead of going to a walk in private clinic on the street.

Michael

Do you think its wise to use olive oil if theres a chance i could have an infection or something the matter with my eardrum that the nurse couldnt see because of the wax? Is it worth going to the urgent care to see a doctor rather than an nurse?

 

[.bill]

Have you considered ear candling its a very safe way to remove wax. If you can find candles it is a simple procedure a herbalist should carry them

 

[Michael Leigh]

Do you think its wise to use olive oil if theres a chance i could have an infection or something the matter with my eardrum that the nurse couldnt see because of the wax? Is it worth going to the urgent care to see a doctor rather than an nurse?

In your particular case regarding your concerns about an ear infection. Without doubt I believe you should see an ENT doctor and not a nurse. The ears are far too delicate and you need professional advice.
Michael

 

[orbiter12]

In your particular case regarding your concerns about an ear infection. Without doubt I believe you should see an ENT doctor and not a nurse. The ears are far to delicate and you need professional advice.
Michael

It is extremity hard to see an ENT here in the UK at such a quick time ( i feel i need to be seen quick to stop the infection worsening, if i have one at all). What do you sugguest the best course of action is for me micheal?

 

[orbiter12]

It is extremity hard to see an ENT here in the UK at such a quick time ( i feel i need to be seen quick to stop the infection worsening, if i have one at all). What do you sugguest the best course of action is for me micheal?

Theres a walk in center near me where i could get seen in 20 minutes by a doctor (not an ENT though) I could ask for their opinion and see if they could give me amoxicillin for a potential infection

 

[Michael Leigh]

It is extremity hard to see an ENT here in the UK at such a quick time ( i feel i need to be seen quick to stop the infection worsening, if i have one at all). What do you sugguest the best course of action is for me micheal?

As you can see I live in the UK. Referrals to ENT can take long but you shouldn't have any problems going to A &E. I would if my ears were in pain or believe there was an infection and couldn't get to my GP quick enough. I would want an ENT doctor to inspect my ears before having wax removed. Go to A&E if your ears are painful or you're worried, there's no need to go private in my opinion.
Michael

 

[orbiter12]

As you can see I live in the UK. Referrals to ENT can take long but you shouldn't have any problems going to A &E. I would if my ears were in pain or believe there was an infection and couldn't get to my GP quick enough. I would want an ENT doctor to inspect my ears before having wax removed. Go to A&E if your ears are painful or you're worried, there's no need to go private in my opinion.
Michael

Is a walk in centre an alternative to A & E? i feel at A & E i would get seen by a nurse and they would dismiss the problem as wax again

The walk in centre near me is a 20 minute wait to see a doctor (not an ent though)

 

[Michael Leigh]

Is a walk in centre an alternative to A & E? i feel at A & E i would get seen by a nurse and they would dismiss the problem as wax again

Whether you go to A&E or a walk-in ask politely (don't demand) that you would like an ENT doctor to inspect your ears. Explain you have tinnitus and are worried. Showing manners and politeness can open a lot of doors for a person and often people are willing to help. Unfortunately some people do not realize this. Laying down the law and demanding certain things only gets peoples back up. A softly softly approach is much better.

Michael

 

[orbiter12]

is it worth being seen by a doctor who isnt an ENT?

I ask because the walk in center by me is basically just a GP out of hours practive where the waiting time is very small

 

[orbiter12]

Can earwax cause ear pain? Anyone have any experience with this

 

[BuzzyBee]

If it hurts when you pull on your ear and kind of all around the edges (as well as inside), then you may have a fungal infection (aka Swimmer's Ear). Unfortunately, some doctors aren't trained to tell fungus from wax and may give you an antibiotic when what you need is an antifungal like clotrimazole. in my opinion you should see an ENT and ask if it could be fungal. Taking antibiotics for a bacterial infection can make the fungus worse, so you really want to see someone who can differentiate between the two. The doctor will look for spores.

For now, it probably wouldn't hurt to use a little olive oil. Not only will that loosen the wax, it may act as an antifungal and help curb further otomycosis if that is in fact what's going on. If you don't have fungus, the oil will at least dry up the wax.

Also, the dryer the wax the more damage that can be done when it is pulled away. My tinnitus started after some very, very, dry wax was pulled right off the eardrum area. Since then I've had at four or 5 irrigations with suction and the works. None of that had any effect on the tinnitus because the wax was softened and the doctor was careful.

 

[orbiter12]

If it hurts when you pull on your ear and kind of all around the edges (as well as inside), then you may have a fungal infection (aka Swimmer's Ear). Unfortunately, some doctors aren't trained to tell fungus from wax and may give you an antibiotic when what you need is an antifungal like clotrimazole. in my opinion you should see an ENT and ask if it could be fungal. Taking antibiotics for a bacterial infection can make the fungus worse, so you really want to see someone who can differentiate between the two. The doctor will look for spores.

For now, it probably wouldn't hurt to use a little olive oil. Not only will that loosen the wax, it may act as an antifungal and help curb further otomycosis if that is in fact what's going on. If you don't have fungus, the oil will at least dry up the wax.

Also, the dryer the wax the more damage that can be done when it is pulled away. My tinnitus started after some very, very, dry wax was pulled right off the eardrum area. Since then I've had at four or 5 irrigations with suction and the works. None of that had any effect on the tinnitus because the wax was softened and the doctor was careful.

My ear doesn't hurt when pulled on or when i put my finger in my ear. Its like an aching pain deep inside the ear with a stabbing pain that comes and goes. Seeing an ENT here in england takes weeks and weeks for a referral.

 

[BuzzyBee]

My ear doesn't hurt when pulled on or when i put my finger in my ear. Its like an aching pain deep inside the ear with a stabbing pain that comes and goes. Seeing an ENT here in england takes weeks and weeks for a referral.

Ah! Now that sounds like TMJ or TMD ear pain. Key word is "stabbing". With an infection you might have some discharge and more outside pain, but TMJ related ear pain definitely feels like stabbing and (at least in my experience) it feels like it's deep within the ear. You might want pull up some info on TMJ ear pain and see if that sounds like what you have.

You should definitely see a doctor, but in the meantime maybe do some research and see if there are any massages you can do -- or maybe try applying heat. I generally try to ignore it, but when it's really bad I take and ibuprofen (which thankfully, doesn't affect the T). You could even try putting a little capsaicin cream (a tiny, tiny, tiny bit!) in the outer area and see what happens. I'm honestly scared to try this, but some sources say it relieves certain types of pain by depleting nerves of a pain neurotransmitter called substance P.

http://drholly.typepad.com/question_and_answer_forum/2005/06/do_capsaicin_cr.html

Or maybe it's just sinus. At any rate, I'm sorry you are dealing with it, but you aren't the only one.