Swimmer's ear

[FrankJ]

Hello,

When I go swimming, the day after I will have pain in one or both of my ears, caused by inflammation of the ear canal. This is usually mild and resolves within a day or two, but every 3-6 months or so I will get a painful infection and have to take antibiotics.

I have been to the GP, one of the docs in the practice says to use ear plugs and alcohol drops after I swim (to evaporate the liquid in the ear), while another doc argues that one should not insert plugs as they can irritate the ear. Instead, he suggests I dry my ear using a hair drier after I swim. This is confusing, but the latter makes sense to me.

I wanted to ask, does anyone have this type of recurring infections when swimming? And what do you do to prevent them? How common is this for people that swim regularly? (I get to the pool 2-3 times a week) I'm getting frustrated as too often I have to take time off from swimming because of this.

Thank you,

Francesco

[gerz]

I had the same problem and now use self made drops (50% boiled water and 50% vinegar) after swimming. That works very well (not even one inflammation since).

[Hookem]

I end up with equillbrium issues if I don't wear ear plugs, so I wear them everytime I get in the pool. No issues that I have noticed.

[gogglesnoseplugs]

Originally Posted by fjconti72

Hello,

When I go swimming, the day after I will have pain in one or both of my ears, caused by inflammation of the ear canal. This is usually mild and resolves within a day or two, but every 3-6 months or so I will get a painful infection and have to take antibiotics.

I have been to the GP, one of the docs in the practice says to use ear plugs and alcohol drops after I swim (to evaporate the liquid in the ear), while another doc argues that one should not insert plugs as they can irritate the ear. Instead, he suggests I dry my ear using a hair drier after I swim. This is confusing, but the latter makes sense to me.

I wanted to ask, does anyone have this type of recurring infections when swimming? And what do you do to prevent them? How common is this for people that swim regularly? (I get to the pool 2-3 times a week) I'm getting frustrated as too often I have to take time off from swimming because of this.

Thank you,

Francesco

The doctor who told you to not wear ear plugs, and to even use a hair dryer to dry out the ear canal, seems a little sketchy to me. Personally I recommend ear plugs because the canals are virtually as dry as they can be; yet every person has different shaped ears, so it has to be the right fit. Ever since I started wearing ear plugs after a nasty infection, I have not had any problems. I use a brand named "Hearos"... One of the things I do along with the ear plugs is to pull my swim cap down over the ears; my cap is large enough for that, and it is like an additional protection from the water.

[rbehnan@mi.rr.com]

I have a major concern about water up my nose and in my ears. I have shied away from swimming until recently got clips and great ear plugs from non other than SPEEDO.
Ramsey behnan

[CoachSuzanne]

everything suggested by both docs is appropriate. Nothing sketchy about either wearing ear plugs or using a hair dryer to dry your ears (except for the time involved). I used to use rubbing alcohol after swimming...not specifically to dry the ears, but the alcohol plus water seems to help break the surface tension & meniscus action of the water that can hold fluid in your ears for long periods.

You'll need to experiment and find what works for you.