Why do we have earwax?

The outer ear is made up of the ear itself and the canal that leads to your eardrum. The ear canal is about one inch long. The skin of the ear canal contains wax-producing glands that are not present anywhere else on your body.

At first, you might wonder why the ear canal is designed that way. After all, the ear canal is like a tunnel that needs to be open for you to hear properly. So why coat it with wax? Well, the skin that lines the ear canal is very sensitive, and a coating of wax helps protect it. In addition, because earwax is sticky, it can trap dirt and objects that accidentally get into the canal entrance before going any deeper. The quantity and quality of earwax vary from person to person - some people make lots of wax while others make very little.

The most important thing to know about earwax is that you should leave it alone. The ear canal will naturally self clean itself but if you try to remove earwax with a cotton bud, it usually accomplishes one of two unintended goals: Either the wax is pushed in deeper and potentially blocks the canal or the sensitive skin lining the canal is scratched which can lead to infection.

For details on House of Hearing's microsuction wax removal service, click here!

Waxing lyrical...

House of Hearing's reputation is built upon the provision of the highest level of care and service to our clients. We know that ear wax (or cerumen to give it the correct name) is not the most pleasant of substances, but if there’s one thing that regularly affects our patients, their hearing aids and our ability to carry out our job, it's wax! Blocked ears render hearing tests inaccurate, cause even the most sophisticated hearing aids to malfunction or whistle, and ear impressions to be useless.

Nearly two years ago House of Hearing established a full wax removal service in our Edinburgh centre. This service is provided by Mairi Macleod, who is both a registered nurse and a hearing aid audiologist. Mairi trained as an aural care nurse at Rotherham Primary Health Ear Care Centre, under the auspices of Sheffield University and then completed further specialist training in wax removal using microsuction through Stoke Mandeville hospital with Mr Ian Botrill, consultant ENT surgeon.

Wax removal is done using a microsuction machine, rather than the older irrigation techniques. This advanced practice, employed by ENT surgeons, is regarded as the safest method of wax removal. Mairi also illustrates the effects using video otoscopy, providing customers with a clear view of the ear canals before and after the procedure. In keeping with the high standards that we set at House of Hearing, her professionalism is regularly praised - by staff and customers alike.

Our wax removal service is available fortnightly, on a Tuesday or Wednesday at our Edinburgh premises. This service is available to our clients and members of the public. We are happy to take referrals from GP surgeries too, and will provide a report, including otoscopy photographs where required.

To make sure you ear canals are up to the job why not arrange to come in and experience the service for yourself.