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As the temperatures rise, there's nothing like taking a dip in the pool or your favorite swimming hole to
cool down.
Kids love swimming, and when properly supervised, it's a great summer activity. But there is one thing
that's hard to protect them from -- that painful summertime infection known as swimmer's ear-which can be downright painful.
"It hurts…it feels like a torpedo in my ear. That's one colorful way to describe this ear infection which
can occur when water gets trapped in your ear canal and the skin inside your ear gets soggy…it becomes sort of a "breeding ground" for bacteria.
Swimmer's ear can develop any time of the year, but summer humidity changes make the skin of the ear
canal more vulnerable to infections. The tell tale signs of this outer ear infection include: Itching, a feeling of stuffiness in your ear, drainage from the ear, and pain in or around your ear especially when it's touched or when you chew or talk. Prescription antibiotic eardrops will clear up the infection. Also, if there's a lot of swelling, a corticosteroid may be added to the drops to decrease inflammation. In severe cases, a "wick" ,which is sort of like a piece of cotton, may be placed in the ear for a few days, so the drops stay in the ear canal better and reach deeper into the ear canal.
Key thing is-until the infection is completely healed you really need to stay out of the water to avoid a
re-infection. Now, there are some things you can do to avoid swimmer's ear…here are some tips for you and your family to try this summer:
First, decrease long-term exposure in the water. Second, always make sure you get the water out of
the external ear canal after getting out of the pool. You can do that just by tilting your head and using a towel to absorb the water. To make sure ear canals are completely dry, use an over-the-counter drying agent. The main ingredient in these drops is alcohol, which dries up the ear canal and makes it more difficult for bacteria to grow .For folks more inclined to make a home remedy, ear drops can be made by combining equal parts of white vinegar and rubbing alcohol. Also, ear plugs should be used for swimming and bathing.
One last tip, Do not use cotton-tipped swabs or hairpins to clean earwax from your ear canal. These
can pack wax deeper and even damage the thin lining of skin inside your ear…which opens the door to an infection. |