Swimmer’s ear is the common name for an outer ear infection. This does mean that the skin around the ear is infected, but that the outer ear canal is infected. The problem often occurs in competitive swimmers because they tend to get water in their ears and that water ends up causing the problem. However, the uncomfortable ear infection can occur in anyone who swims or showers and has the potential to get water in their ears.
Do Not Waste Time
One of the best ways to treat swimmer’s ear is to take care of it before the inflammation can begin. There are after swimming ear drops that will dry out the ear and get rid of the water before it causes any problems. The ear drops are available without a prescription and are quite inexpensive priced at just a few dollars. Most of them contain a solution of alcohol, but it is not advisable to make your own solution.
Another good way to avoid getting an infection is to shake out your ears right after swimming. You may have seen people doing this by tilting their heads to one side and gentle shaking it to get the water out. This often works to loosen the water from the ears and prevent the irritation. If you do not like to shake your head, you can also lay on the side that has water in it and gravity will make the water come out on its own.
Some people will also get swimmer’s ear by showering. If you tilt your head in the shower, there is a likelihood that you could get water stuck inside of your ear. It is a good idea to not try to intentionally get water in your ears when you are showering, so be careful with the angle that you hold your head when you are showering.
Once you have a swimmer’s ear infection, you will know. The only symptom that you will recognize is that of pain inside of your ear. You might also feel the need to scratch your ear or stick something in your ear to ease the pain, but this is not recommended. The best thing to do if you have developed a swimmer’s ear infection is to see your doctor so he can prescribe medicated antibiotic ear drops. These will cool the pain, stop the itching, and cure your ear infection rather quickly.
Should You Use Oral Antibiotic?
Your physician will not prescribe an oral antibiotic, like you would take for an inner ear infection, because this infection is on the outside of the ear drum. You will also need to be sure to not stick anything in your ear other than the medicated drops, because you could irritate the inflammation and infection.
If you frequently get swimmer’s ear, you might want to consider buying ear plugs for when you swim. They are usually very inexpensive, but just be sure that you have a tight seal when you use them, because water has a way of sneaking into the smallest spaces and you could create very good conditions for another infection to develop.