Ear wax usually comes out on its own and doesn't need treatment. However, if you notice any build-up that's causing symptoms, there are some simple things you can do. The first thing to try is putting drops in your ears to help soften the wax.
While your body naturally gets rid of earwax, it can only handle so much. If there's too much, some of it may harden before your body is able to push it out through the ear canal.
Unless the wax in your ears forms a blockage, you shouldn't have to go out of your way to clean them. Once earwax naturally moves toward the opening of the ear canal, it typically falls out or washes away.
Your provider can also flush out the wax using a syringe filled with warm water and saline or diluted hydrogen peroxide. Medicated ear drops may also be recommended to help soften the wax, such as carbamide peroxide (Debrox Earwax Removal Kit, Murine Ear Wax Removal System).
If ear cleaning drops don't work, the ears might need flushing with a bulb syringe, which are available at drug stores or grocery stores. You'll want to fill the syringe with warm water, place it near your ear opening, and carefully squeeze the bulb. The warm water will flood your ear and break up the wax.
Sodium bicarbonate ear drops Sodium bicarbonate (also known as bicarbonate of soda) ear drops work by creating a chemical reaction with the ear wax: the alkaline bicarbonate drops react with acidic ear wax to produce salt plus water. Sodium bicarbonate often affects within a day or two.
A pharmacist can help with earwax build-up
They can give advice and suggest treatments. They might recommend medicines to dissolve the earwax. The earwax should fall out on its own or dissolve after about a week.
The medical term for earwax is cerumen, and hydrogen peroxide is a cerumenolytic, which means that it can soften, break down, and dissolve earwax. Ear drops can contain a variety of forms of hydrogen peroxide. A common type is carbamide hydroxide, which adds oxygen to the wax, causing it to bubble.
Can impacted wax cause ear pain? Yes. It's common to experience earache with impacted earwax, as it can cause pressure on your ear canal and eardrum, which can irritate the nerves and lead to pain.
If you are dealing with impacted earwax you may experience, Muffled hearing. A feeling of fullness in the ears. Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
If you push cotton swabs, pencils, your finger or other objects in your ear canal to try to remove wax, the force can push the wax further into the ear and compress it against the eardrum. Ear wax blockage, also called cerumen impaction, is a common cause of temporary hearing loss.
To do this, just gently massage the outside of the ear using circular movements. That way, the impaction will soften, which can help the earwax drain more easily. Once you've finished making these circular movements, pull your ear slightly backwards, from the lobe to the top of the auricle.
Green earwax or earwax with a foul smell is also an indication of an infection. If there is blood in your earwax, this could be a sign of an injury to the ear or a ruptured eardrum. Gray or black earwax usually means there is a buildup of dust in the ear or impacted earwax.
No objects — including cotton swabs — are safe for extracting ear wax at home. Home remedies like irrigation and vacuum-type devices aren't well studied and may harm your ears and hearing. So, while you may be tempted to address an ear wax blockage yourself, it's much safer to visit your doctor's office.
Once you are used to the feeling the solution should be left to bubble and fizz in the ear for up to one minute at a time, although when you first use it you may only tolerate the feeling for a few seconds. Tip solution out onto a tissue. The ear canal will dry itself in the next minute or so.
Try Droplets of Hydrogen Peroxide Into Your Ear
After you tilt your ear upward and put the drops in, a few seconds should be enough to break up the wax blockage. You might need to repeat this several times a day for a couple of days, but ultimately, the clog should clear.
Hydrogen peroxide ear drops may not remove enough earwax if used alone. In this case, a person may want to consider rinsing the ear with an ear syringe.
Signs and symptoms of earwax blockage may include: Earache. Feeling of fullness in the ear. Ringing or noises in the ear (tinnitus)
Hydrogen peroxide is commonly found in pharmacies and stores selling personal care products. It is an inexpensive and potentially helpful tool for loosening up problematic earwax that can cause hearing loss and tinnitus and flushing your ears if you believe you have mild impaction or buildup.
The Bottom Line. Debrox is a commonly found product that can be effective in the home removal of earwax. However, it is a more expensive and branded version of common hydrogen peroxide. If you receive appropriate instructions to use hydrogen peroxide after speaking to your doctor, you may be able to save some money.
To ease ear pain, apply a warm face cloth or a heating pad set on low. There may be some drainage from the ear when the heat melts earwax.
Try propping yourself up on a stack of pillows, or better yet sleep in a reclining sofa or armchair. As long as you're upright enough to allow the ears to drain more successfully, you should notice an improvement in symptoms and be able to sleep much easier.
For most people, blocked ears are a temporary condition that will clear up when the pressure in the ears returns to normal. However, if this doesn't happen a visit to an ear, nose and throat (ENT) professional may be helpful.