Earwax smells bad: Causes and solutions

Earwax plays a role in helping to prevent dirt and keep the ears healthy. However, foul-smelling earwax is a problem to be aware of. This could be due to a serious illness or complication.

Let's find out the causes and treatment of bad smell earwax in the following article.

What causes earwax to smell bad?

There are many causes of a foul-smelling earwax, including:

Too much earwax

Too much earwax can cause ear blockages. At that time, earwax will have an unpleasant smell. Signs that you have too much earwax include:

• Ear hurt
• Hearing loss
• Ear discharge

Middle ear infection

Middle ear infections are usually caused by bacteria or viruses. Middle ear infections can be painful due to inflammation and earwax buildup. At the same time, it also causes the ear to drain and have an unpleasant smell.

Middle ear infections in children often have the following characteristic signs:

• Ear hurt
• Strong twitching ears
• Difficulty sleeping or hearing loss
• Cantankerous
• Crying
• Overbalance
• Fever over 38˚C
• Picky eaters
• Headache

Middle ear infections in adults can cause symptoms such as:

• Hearing loss
• Ear hurt.
• Ear discharge

Earwax has a bad smell due to a foreign object stuck in the ear

A foreign body stuck in the ear is a problem that can occur in both children and adults. Foreign bodies caught in the child's ear are usually particles, small toys or food. Meanwhile, adults' ears are often blocked by insect intrusion.

A trapped foreign body in the ear often causes symptoms such as:

• Painful
• Hearing loss
• Ear infections
• Ears have a bad smell

Outer ear infection

Water can collect in your ears after you swim or shower. This causes the outer ear to become wet, leading to infection and foul-smelling earwax. Signs that you have an otitis externa include:

• Itching in the ear canal
• Red swollen ears
• Unpleasant feeling
• There is pus
• Hearing loss
• Fever

Earwax smells bad due to Cholesteatoma

Cholesteatoma is an abnormal growth of masses (not cancerous tumors) in the ear. They usually develop in the middle ear, behind the eardrum. Cholesteatomas can form when you have a middle ear infection. In addition, some cholesteatoma conditions also result from birth defects.

Earwax that smells or discharges is one of the first symptoms of cholesteatoma. Other symptoms include:

• Tinnitus
• Feeling pain inside or behind the ear
• Hearing loss
• Overbalance
• Decreased function of facial muscles

Ear cancer

Ear cancer is a very rare condition. However, it can still appear in the ear canal, middle ear, or inner ear. Ear cancer can form due to chronic ear infections and a number of other causes. Squamous cell cancer is the most common type of ear cancer. In addition, there are several other types of ear cancer such as:

• Basal cell cancer
• Melanoma
• Adenocarcinoma
• Adenocarcinoma

Ear cancer symptoms depend on where the cancer cells appear (ear canal, middle ear, or inner ear). The most common symptoms include:

• Ear discharge (may be bloody)
• Ear hurt
• Hearing loss
• Facial muscle weakness, if cancer cells are in the ear canal
• The appearance of a tumor, if cancer cells are in the ear canal
• The facial muscles cannot be moved towards the tumor, if the cancer is in the middle ear
• Ear pain, if the cancer is in the middle ear
• Headache or dizziness, if the cancer is in the inner ear
• Tinnitus

Treating bad-smelling earwax

You should avoid getting foreign objects such as cotton swabs into your ears when cleaning your ears. At the same time, you should also avoid allowing the earwax to penetrate deeply into the ear, because it can cause serious damage to the eardrum and ear canal.

Each cause of bad smell earwax will have its own remedy.

Có quá nhiều ráy tai

Ráy tai thường không cần phải loại bỏ nếu nó không gây ra bất kỳ triệu chứng nào. Tuy nhiên, khi nó tích tụ quá nhiều, bạn có thể làm sạch tai của mình theo các bước sau:

• Làm mềm ráy tai bằng các loại dầu dùng cho em bé, hydro peroxide, glycerin hoặc dầu khoáng.
• Vài ngày sau khi ráy tai mềm ra, sử dụng ống tiêm tai chuyên dụng để phun nước ấm vào tai. Tiếp đến, nghiêng đầu để nước chảy ra khỏi tai. Tuy nhiên, bạn cần lưu ý tránh phun nước vào tai khi tai đang bị đau, chảy dịch hoặc có dấu hiệu nhiễm trùng. Trong trường hợp này, bạn nên đến gặp các bác sĩ chuyên khoa để được kiểm tra kỹ lưỡng.
• Sử dụng khăn hoặc máy sấy để làm khô phần tai ngoài.

Bạn nên tránh sử dụng phương pháp nến xông tai để loại bỏ ráy tai. Nhiều nghiên cứu cho thấy phương pháp này không đem lại hiệu quả và có thể gây tổn thương cho tai.

If you cannot remove earwax on your own, see a doctor or use professional services. Your doctor will safely remove earwax for you using specialized tools.

Treatment of bad-smelling earwax caused by middle ear infections

If you suspect you have a middle ear infection, you should see your doctor for proper treatment. Symptoms of a middle ear infection usually last more than a day with severe pain. In particular, you need to pay attention to the symptoms of ear infections in babies under 6 months, such as trouble sleeping and often grumpy.

According to Healthline, to treat an ear infection, your doctor may recommend the following methods:

• Monitor ear infections for 1 to 2 weeks
• Use pain relievers
• Warm compress
• Use antibiotics
• Remove the foreign body from the ear with forceps if possible
• Tilt your head down to remove the foreign body from the ear
• Wash your ears with a special syringe and warm water
• If you have an insect in your ear, you can use warm olive oil, baby oil, or mineral oil to get rid of it.

Stuck in a foreign body in the ear

If a foreign object is stuck in the child's ear and the above methods do not work, or the child feels pain or has hearing loss, you should seek the help of a specialist.

Outer ear infection

The most common treatment for an outer ear infection is to clean the ear with a suction device or use an infection-killing, pain reliever.

Before the ear fully recovers, you should not swim and use hearing aids, headphones, etc. At the same time, you should also avoid getting water into your ears by covering your ears when showering.

Cholesteatoma

If you suspect you have a cholesteatoma, you should go to the hospital for an examination. Common treatments for cholesteatoma are the use of antibiotics and ear drops to clear the ear. If that doesn't work, you may need surgery to remove the cholesteatoma.

Ear cancer

If you have ear cancer, your doctor may recommend surgical options. In addition, chemotherapy and radiation therapy will also be used in cases of need.