The accumulation of earwax in your ear canal can cause tinnitus. This article explains what actually happens when earwax builds up and its impact on overall hearing health and tinnitus.
What is tinnitus?
Tinnitus refers to the perception of "non-existent" sounds in the ears. It is often described as a ringing, but it can also be a hissing, buzzing, roaring, or clicking sound.
Each case of tinnitus is unique. The sound you perceive may come and go or remain permanent. Some people perceive a very loud sound, while others compare it to background noise.
Tinnitus affects between 15% and 20% of the population. It is not a disease, but a symptom of an underlying problem, such as an earwax blockage in the auditory system. To understand what causes tinnitus, we must first understand how we hear.
How do we hear?
The auditory system encompasses all parts of the outer and inner ear, as well as the area of the brain that interprets sound. Here's how it works:
Sound is channeled through the outer ear and ear canal to the eardrum.
The sound vibrates the eardrum and the tiny bones attached to it.
These vibrations reach the spiral-shaped cochlea in the inner ear.
The cochlea converts sound into nerve impulses that travel to the auditory cortex of the brain.
The brain interprets the sound.
Anything that disrupts this system can cause tinnitus: certain medications, deterioration or damage to parts of the ear, Meniere's disease, otosclerosis, high blood pressure, anemia, allergies, ear infections, and earwax blockages.
How does an earwax blockage cause tinnitus?
Earwax protects your ear canal and eardrum from infections. Normally, it naturally moves out of the ear. When this doesn't happen and it accumulates excessively in the ear canal, it traps debris, hardens, and obstructs the auditory system. Earwax blockages can be exacerbated by cotton swabs, earphones, and headphones.
Usually, the obstruction only causes a decrease in hearing, but sometimes the system overcompensates for this reduction in sound. When the blockage interrupts sound and neural circuits no longer receive their usual stimulation, these circuits react by "chattering."
Your brain, disoriented, tries to interpret this activity as whistling, buzzing, or hissing. What does this mean for you?
Simply put, removing earwax can make your tinnitus disappear.
How to remove earwax at home
To remove excess earwax or a blockage, you can consult your doctor or use home remedies. At home, this involves ear drops and warm water irrigation.
Hydrogen peroxide and oils
Several substances can soften earwax:
Hydrogen peroxide
Baby oil
Mineral oil
Olive oil
Sweet almond oil
Glycerin
If you use hydrogen peroxide, some water may remain in your ear after treatment. Experts recommend pouring a few drops of rubbing alcohol into the ear and then allowing it to drain to prevent infection.
If you opt for an oil, it is best to warm it slightly. You can warm a small bottle in your hand or immerse a larger container in warm water for about a minute. Our ear canals have a natural reflex that can cause temporary dizziness if the liquid is too cold.
If you have never used ear drops, here's how:
Tilt your head to the side and gently pull your outer ear up and back.
Using a dropper, instill 3 or 4 drops into your ear. This liquid will soften the earwax.
Keep your head tilted or lie on your side for 5 minutes. Then turn over to let the drops drain onto a towel. The earwax will not come out all at once.
You can repeat this daily for up to 14 days.
Warm water irrigation
For faster results, use warm water irrigation. After using a few drops of hydrogen peroxide or oil to soften and loosen the earwax, you can rinse the ear with warm water using a rubber bulb syringe, as follows:
Fill the bulb syringe with water and expel a small amount to remove air.
Tilt your head to the side and gently pull your ear back to straighten the ear canal.
Holding the tip of the bulb syringe about ¼ inch from your ear, gently squeeze to send some warm water.
Lie down with your ear on a towel and pull on your earlobe to allow the water to drain completely.
Be sure to dry your outer ear thoroughly.
You can pour a few drops of alcohol into your ear and then let them drain to remove any remaining water. Alcohol also restores the pH of the ear canal, which can prevent infection.
A simple bulb syringe and a towel are sufficient, but you can also use an earwax removal kit. These irrigation kits are readily available over-the-counter and typically include a spray bottle, tubing, several tips, and a collection basin to hold under the ear.
In general, these kits work better than a direct shower jet: flooding the ear with water can damage the ear canal or eardrum and trigger an infection.
Earwax removal instruments
Doctors can use specific instruments to extract earwax because they have an illuminated otoscope and clearly see what they are doing. Using most of these tools at home can be dangerous, but some safe products exist.
Spiral earwax removers help remove earwax that has already been loosened by drops or irrigation. You can safely insert the pointed silicone spiral into your ear and turn it in the indicated direction to catch the softened earwax. These kits come with several disposable tips.
Conclusion
If an earwax blockage is blocking sound signals in your ear, removing it may be the simplest and fastest solution to your tinnitus.
Your doctor can do this, or you can do it comfortably at home using oils or warm water irrigation.
"After many years of practicing as an ENT, I am still amazed at the number of symptoms related to earwax. It is important to consult a healthcare professional if earwax is causing you problems, and in some cases, it is truly necessary for an ENT to address it." - Drew Sutton, MD, Board-Certified ENT.
As always, we recommend consulting a healthcare professional before attempting any home treatment, but these solutions should give you a good overview of how to clean excess earwax to relieve your tinnitus. Hopefully, one of these remedies will help you!
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Here's to better hearing!
Sources:
Understanding the Facts | ATA
How Do We Hear? | NIDCD
Ear Irrigation - StatPearls | NCBI Bookshelf
