Posts > MISDIAGNOSIS ! AND DO NOT USE THIS METHOD TO REMOVE EARWAX
MISDIAGNOSIS ! AND DO NOT USE THIS METHOD TO REMOVE EARWAX
Posted on 21/01/2011 09:54:00
I have just had the most unbelievable meetings with one of my patients that I had to write about it on my blog! I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry because it is funny but also majorly serious!!!
Mr S from the next village phoned me yesterday to say that since he came back off holiday he couldn't hear. On holiday he had dived into the swimming pool to rescue some money dropped in by a little girl - he's a good samaritan! x
Well after this event his hearing went majorly low on the left side, this being his only working ear so you can imagine his concern.
He went to the Doctors last week who said maybe its an infection and gave him antibiotics, and also recommended a wax removal tool from the pharmacist next door.
Mr S came into my office and immediately on looking in his ear, you could see his severely retracted eardrum, so I drew a picture for him of a normal one and of his to explain what had happened. The pressure within the swimming pool had caused a negative pressure to occur within his middle ear chamber that now was not correcting itself and had caused a further 50dB hearing loss on top of his current lowered hearing levels. There was also no infection which rendered the antibiotics useless!
I advised them to go back to the GP for an urgent referral where a specialist could begin treatment of a number of different avenues to correct the pressure problem, or likely it would correct itself at some point.
They then showed me the wax removal instrument which was a plastic balloon shaped instrument with long nozzle - a bit like a turkey baster but fatter in the bulb end. It came with very few instructions other than to put cooled boiled water in it, aim it in the ear an pump!!!!
This is probably the easiest way to take our your ear drum...I'm not sure about the wax, but the eardrum yes! The old syringing method of removing wax was made illegal due to the exact same nature of how the water was aimed in and this was done by professionals. Now you are being sent home to do it to yourself, because you cannot sue yourself!
Taking wax out of your ear should only be done by a fully qualified professional..the nurse, the Doctor, or a clinical ear care practitioner...please do not do this yourself. And if any Doctors are reading this, if you do not wish to take wax out at your practise please source somewhere for the patient to go, and not send them home to do it for themselves. If its not safe for the Doctor to do, its surely not safe for the patient to do.
Give me your thoughts.....frightening! or funny !