Is It Swimmer's Ear? Here's How to Tell—and How to Get Rid of It
Splashing around in a pool isn't the only way you can contract this painful, itchy infection. Here's what experts say about other causes, symptoms to look for, and the best way to ease the discomfort.
If you've ever experienced an ear infection, then you know how uncomfortable and even painful it can be. Swimmer's ear is a specific type of ear infection that also causes discomfort and pain in and around the outer ear canal. It typically starts out mild, with moderate itching and redness, and then can become tender and inflamed, potentially harming your ability to hear.
Despite its name, you don't have to spend time at a beach or in a pool to pick up swimmer's ear. This condition can happen after you take a shower or bath, or you simply clean your ears with cotton swabs. And while kids are more prone to swimmer's ear because they have narrower ear canals, adults are very much at risk well.
Here’s how to know if you have swimmer's ear, and what you can do to ease the swelling and aching fast, and then prevent it from happening again.
What causes swimmer’s ear?
Swimmer’s ear, also known by its medical name, otitis externa, usually occurs after water gets trapped inside the ear. This allows bacteria (and in some cases, a fungus) in your ear canal to start multiplying, leading to an infection near the opening of the ear, explains Ileana Showalter, MD, an ENT-otolaryngologist at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
True to the condition’s name, swimming, or just splashing around in a body of water, is a major cause. But swimmer’s ear can also arise from any situation where your ear traps a small amount of water, like after a shower or bath, or even time in a hot tub.
Sometimes swimmer's ear develops not from trapped water but from a cut or scrape just inside the ear canal. Overly aggressive cleaning with cotton swabs tends to cause it; if the swab scratches the skin inside the ear, bacteria can thrive and trigger an infection. People with excessive ear wax or the chronic skin condition eczema, which causes itching and redness, are also more likely to develop swimmer's ear, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.
If you've ever experienced an ear infection, then you know how uncomfortable and even painful it can be. Swimmer's ear is a specific type of ear infection that also causes discomfort and pain in and around the outer ear canal. It typically starts out mild, with moderate itching and redness, and then can become tender and inflamed, potentially harming your ability to hear.
Despite its name, you don't have to spend time at a beach or in a pool to pick up swimmer's ear. This condition can happen after you take a shower or bath, or you simply clean your ears with cotton swabs. And while kids are more prone to swimmer's ear because they have narrower ear canals, adults are very much at risk well.
Here’s how to know if you have swimmer's ear, and what you can do to ease the swelling and aching fast, and then prevent it from happening again.
What causes swimmer’s ear?
Swimmer’s ear, also known by its medical name, otitis externa, usually occurs after water gets trapped inside the ear. This allows bacteria (and in some cases, a fungus) in your ear canal to start multiplying, leading to an infection near the opening of the ear, explains Ileana Showalter, MD, an ENT-otolaryngologist at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore.
True to the condition’s name, swimming, or just splashing around in a body of water, is a major cause. But swimmer’s ear can also arise from any situation where your ear traps a small amount of water, like after a shower or bath, or even time in a hot tub.
Sometimes swimmer's ear develops not from trapped water but from a cut or scrape just inside the ear canal. Overly aggressive cleaning with cotton swabs tends to cause it; if the swab scratches the skin inside the ear, bacteria can thrive and trigger an infection. People with excessive ear wax or the chronic skin condition eczema, which causes itching and redness, are also more likely to develop swimmer's ear, according to the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.
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