ear candles

[DocVikingo]

1. "Laryngoscope. 1996 Oct;106(10):1226-9.

Ear candles--efficacy and safety.

Seely DR, Quigley SM, Langman AW.

Spokane Ear, Nose, and Throat Clinic, WA 99204, USA.

Ear candles are a popular and inexpensive alternative health treatment advocated for cerumen removal. A hollow candle is burned with one end in the ear canal with the intent of creating negative pressure and drawing cerumen from the ear. If effective, significant savings could result from the use of ear candles. This study evaluates the efficacy and safety of this alternative method for cerumen management. Tympanometric measurements in an ear canal model demonstrated that ear candles do not produce negative pressure. A limited clinical trial (eight ears) showed no removal of cerumen from the external auditory canal. Candle wax was actually deposited in some. A survey of 122 otolaryngologists identified 21 ear injuries resulting from ear candle use. Ear candles have no benefit in the management of cerumen and may result in serious injury."

2. J Laryngol Otol. 2004 Jan;118(1):1-2.
Ear candles: a triumph of ignorance over science.Ernst E.

Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter & Plymouth, Exeter, UK. Edzard.Ernst@pms.ac.uk

Ear candles are hollow tubes coated in wax which are inserted into patients' ears and then lit at the far end. The procedure is used as a complementary therapy for a wide range of conditions. A critical assessment of the evidence shows that its mode of action is implausible and demonstrably wrong. There are no data to suggest that it is effective for any condition. Furthermore, ear candles have been associated with ear injuries. The inescapable conclusion is that ear candles do more harm than good. Their use should be discouraged."

Regards,

DocVikingo

 

[justleesa]

... wouldn't that be easy to prove?...just burn the candle without it being in your ear and see if there's any wax? Since my dive season begins in 2 weeks, guess I'll be doing it soon and will also try it without being in the ear.

I think WC said he did just that...

I did my own test and found them to be bunk. Burn one in your ear and one free standing and the same crap is left behind, melted bees wax.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

My mistake. I thought his was about making candles out of my earwax. Takes awhile and they burn kinda fast.

 

[NJMike]

Yeah, I found the same websites. Very interesting, mostly because after using them, I actually felt a difference. My wife said the same thing. Tomorrow I'm going to do the test myself.

The bad news will, of course, be...if it's a pile of baloney, why did I feel an improvement?

Here's what I did: I am a jogger, and last year noticed that, with every stride, I was feeling both ears momentarily closing and reopening...more like becoming blocked and unblocked, with each stride. After candling, I did not feel that sensation anymore...the ears felt as though they did NOT become blocked and unblocked with each stride.

So, if the candling did NOT work, how do I explain that?

 

[Charlie99]

What is peoples fascination with trying to get wax out of there ears? It is there for a reason ya know and as long as you leave it alone (dont stick stuff in your ears, ever!) its handles itself… mostly.

That works for some people, but not for others. Unfortunately I'm one of those people that build up enough earwax to trap water behind the buildup. Not only is it an annoying sensation, leaving trapped water in the ear tends to irritate the skin and make ear infections more likely.

If I haven't been diving for a while, I'll use some commercial over-the-counter stuff like Debrox to clear it out to the point where water freely runs out of my ear. From then on, my ears are self cleaning as I dive.

Unfortunately though, I had 2 ear external ear infections before I started being more careful.

I've haven't had problems once I started using 3 different products, each for a different purpose.

Debrox is for cleaning out large buildups when I haven't been diving. I use it once or twice a year.

Swim-Ear, Auri-Dry or similar 95% isopropyl alcohol + 5% glycerin I use by pouring into the ear, and then almost immediately dumping back out. It works to help get a bit of stubborn water of the ear.

If I sense any sort of irritation of the skin in the outer ear canal (that's a fancy way of saying if I have a little itch in my ear) I'll soak each ear for a full 5 minutes in the 50/50 alcohol & vinegar solution.

After noting how the vinegar and alcohol helped my ears, I tried it one time on a scratch instead of mecurochrome, tincture of iodine, or neosporin. For me at least, it works better than any of those! So nowdays alcohol & vinegar is the first thing I reach for to treat scratches, nicks, and gouges.

 

[JessH]

While ear candles don't remove any wax they could be heating up your ears and sinuses a bit which might help them to clear? This is just a guess of course. There is also the placebo effect.

NJMike: What you describe while running sounds alot more like sinuses than ear wax to me. One thing you can do for that, that does actually work and is recommended by ENTs is Jala Neti.

~Jess

 

[mstevens]

Arguing about how ear candles work is like arguing about how unicorns cause runs in your socks.

 

[TravelSimone]

Arguing about how ear candles work is like arguing about how unicorns cause runs in your socks.

 

[JessH]

Arguing about how ear candles work is like arguing about how unicorns cause runs in your socks.

Hmm, that explains everything. Time to dig the crossbow out of the closet so I can take care of some unicorns.

~Jess

 

[justleesa]

just came across this....



hmmmmm.....