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Please call 911 immediately if you are having chest pain, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding, sudden weakness or numbness, or if you think you have a medical emergency.
Swimmer's Ear Treatment
Self-Care at Home
- Avoid any further trauma to the ear. Do not attempt to remove visible debris or drainage from the ear.
- Apply heat to the ear to control the pain at home. Warmth from a heating pad may provide some relief. Fold a towel in half and place it between the heating pad and the ear. Limit the use of the heating pad to short periods. The folded towel should help prevent accidental burning of the ear if the heating pad is too hot.
- If you're not allergic, you may try a variety of over-the-counter pain medicines such as aspirin, ibuprofen (such as Advil), or acetaminophen (such as Tylenol).
- Nonprescription eardrops are not usually strong enough to cure the problem. Such drops are useful only for prevention of episodes after water exposure. Eardrops used for treatment of the condition must be obtained with a prescription from your doctor.
Medical Treatment
If there is a large amount of drainage or debris in the ear, the doctor will clean out the ear canal before medicine is placed in the ear.
- The ear canal may be cleaned out using a wire or plastic loop instrument or under direct vision using a suction device.
- After cleaning the ear, the doctor may place a foam wick in the canal. This allows antibiotic or antifungal eardrops or both to be placed onto the wick. The wick swells up inside the ear canal, thus holding the medicine in place against the lining of the skin.
- Oral pain medicines are generally prescribed if over-the-counter medicines are not strong enough. Oral antibiotics are not often prescribed unless the infection is severe.
more information from eMedicineHealth
WebMD Medical Reference from eMedicineHealth
Reviewed by
Cynthia Dennison Haines, MD on May 24, 2006
This information is not intended to replace the advice of a doctor.
© 2006 WebMD, Inc. All rights reserved.
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