Doctor, my ear hurts

Sara: Doctor, I come to see you because I would like to show you my right ear. There is something bothering me…

Dr Pierrat: You mean there’s a foreign body inside the duct?

Sara: No that’s not it. She’s very sensitive and I don’t feel well.

Dr Pierrat: You didn’t clean your ears with a cotton swab in a somewhat aggressive way?

Sara: No, I know it’s best not to do that.

Dr Pierrat: How long has this ear bothered you?

Sara: Since the day before yesterday, it seems to me…

Dr Pierrat:Do you have any other symptoms? Runny nose, itchy throat?

Sara: No, I’m just like cotton, with a clogged ear feeling.

Dr Pierrat: No fever either?

Sara: No, I do not think so.

Dr Pierrat: Did you do anything special the day before yesterday, did you go to a concert?

Sara: I would have liked to, but no! I just went swimming with my little girl who is starting to swim well. So I was able to swim, too…

Dr Pierrat: We’re going to watch this closely, but I wonder if you’re not making a swimmer’s ear.

Sarah: It exists, does it? I’ve never heard of it… What is it exactly?

Dr Pierrat: It’s a common ear infection, which occurs after swimming: a little water has remained in the external auditory canal, which has favored the multiplication of microbes. Did you have a lot of ear infections when you were a child?

Sarah: Oh yes, it seems that between 2 and 3 years old, it did not stop. Do you think this is related?

Dr Pierrat:It is simply that the shape of certain ear canals promotes the accumulation of water, and therefore weakens them. Please come closer, I’m going to look at your ears with the otoscope. The examination indeed shows good inflammation of the right outer ear, which fully explains the discomfort and pain. The left duct is normal.

Sarah: Will you be able to relieve me quickly?

Dr Pierrat: I’m going to prescribe antibiotic drops to put in your ear for a week. Be sure to tilt your head to the side for a few moments so that the drops do not come out. And no more bathing during that time! The pain should stop soon.

What you need to know about swimmer’s ear

Also called otitis external, swimmer’s ear, causing intense pain in the ear, is favored by swimming. “In more than 95% of cases, it is due to stagnation in the external auditory canal (where the cotton swab is introduced) of water contaminated by bacteria” explains Prof. Christian Adrien Righini, head of the ENT department at Grenoble University Hospital, professor at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of the Alps. It is often benign, but its treatment prevents any bathing for at least 7 days.

>> How to avoid it? “Do not swim in bodies of stagnant water (ponds, etc.), advises Professor Righini. After each swim, drain the water well from each ear by tilting your head to the side, and wipe with the corner of a towel. Do not use Q-Tips.”

>> How to treat it? Stop swimming and call your doctor. “Take paracetamol for pain, if needed. And avoid anti-inflammatories, so as not to risk a generalized infection (sepsis), potentially very serious in the event of septic shock”

>> Consult quickly : “Early support, a otitis can be cured with a simple cleaning of the auditory canal, an analgesic and sometimes antibiotics.” On the other hand, if we wait and the ear canal swells and closes, “it will be necessary to place a drain (small tube) and instill antibiotic drops” – a treatment that will require 15 to 18 days without swimming.