What is earwax? Earwax, or cerumen, is a waxy, sticky secretion from glands in the outer two-thirds of the ear canal. These include sweat glands, sebaceous glands and ceruminous glands. You rarely find earwax at the back of the ear canal. In our experience, it only gets there if a cotton bud, a finger or too many drops push it back.
What Is Earwax Made Of?
Squamous skin cells and keratin make up 60% of earwax. The rest consists of alcohols, cholesterol and fatty acids.
Why Do We Have Earwax?
Earwax has a useful purpose. Firstly, it protects the ear from bacterial and fungal infections. It does this by keeping the ear canal slightly acidic. In addition, its antimicrobial properties help reduce the growth of bacteria and fungi.
Earwax also lubricates and moisturises the ear canal. Furthermore, its waxy, sticky surface stops the ear canal absorbing water. As a result, it helps prevent microbial growth.
Types of Earwax
The colour and texture of ear wax vary between different populations. For example:
- Southeast Asian populations tend to have harder, drier and flakier wax. Some have dry, stringy wax made up of dead skin.
- Most European populations have wet, sticky brown wax. In fact, this is the most common type we see in clinic.
Should You Clean Your Ears?
No, you do not need to clean your ears out. The human ear has a wonderful self-cleaning mechanism. In fact, wax naturally migrates out of the ear three or four times a year. Dead skin sheds from the eardrum and travels along the ear canal. As it moves, it drags the wax along with it to the front of the ear. You can learn more in our guide to ear wax myths and facts.
Why Do Ears Get Blocked?
Ear canals vary in shape and size, and some people have narrow ear canals. This tends to become more of an issue with age. That is because the elastic and cartilage fibres in the outer third of the canal break down. As a result, the canal narrows and stops wax migrating out of the ear. So, you become more prone to blockages.
Hearing aid users often have the same problem, because the hearing aid blocks the canal. In addition, some patients push wax further down the ear canal with a foreign object. Usually, this is a cotton bud, which scratches the canal walls and disturbs the natural migration of wax.
In the most acute cases, we find wax trapped in the bony part of the canal or on the eardrum itself. This becomes a non-routine procedure, and our ENT-trained clinical leads remove wax from the eardrum. However, most audiologists and high street providers will not remove wax from the eardrum. Instead, they treat it as an acute case and refer patients on to ENT.
Symptoms of Earwax Build-Up
- Itchy ears
- Reduced hearing
- A feeling of fullness in the ear, headaches or jaw pain
- Tinnitus
- Pain, especially with tough, abrasive wax
- A tickly cough or loss of taste
- Dizziness or imbalance
For more information, see the NHS guide to earwax build-up.
What to Do if Earwax Blocks Your Ear
If you have tried drops from your GP and they have not solved the problem, it is time for microsuction. In our clinics, we use surgical endoscopic cameras to gently remove the wax from your ear canal. The procedure is quick, effective and, most importantly, safe.
Most patients can hear properly again within 10 minutes of the procedure. You can also get same-day earwax removal. Our clinical leads handle more challenging cases, such as wax on the eardrum. Either way, you will leave free of wax.
If you need a procedure, or you are searching for ear wax removal near you, call our team.