Are You Sick?

Ear Injury

Cut or Scratch. Most cuts of the outer ear do not need sutures.
Bruise. Most bruises of the outer ear just leave a purple mark. They heal on their own.
Blood Clot (serious). Most of the outer ear is made of cartilage. A large blood clot can cut off the blood supply to the cartilage. It needs to be drained. If not, the ear may become deformed (boxer's ear).
Ear Canal Bleeding. Most are due to a scratch of ear canal. This can be caused by cotton swab, fingernail, or ear exam. Most stop bleeding on their own. Persistent bleeding needs to be seen.
Cotton Swab Injuries. Cotton swabs cause thousands of ear injuries each year in the US. Be very careful using cotton swabs in your ears.
Punctured Eardrum. Most are due to long-pointed objects put in the ear canal. Examples are cotton swabs, pencils, sticks, straws, or wires.
Loss of Hearing (serious). Caused by blunt trauma, such as a slap to the ear. Also, caused by explosions.

When to Call for Ear Injury
Call Doctor or Seek Care Now Upper part of the ear is very swollen Pointed object was put into the ear canal (such as a pencil, stick, or wire) Severe pain Skin is cut and No past tetanus shots You think you have a serious injury You think you need to be seen, and the problem is urgent	Contact Doctor Within 24 Hours Few drops of blood in the ear canal. Caused by a minor injury, cotton swab or ear exam. Injury causes an earache Dirty cut or hard to clean and no tetanus shot in more than 5 years Clean cut and no tetanus shot for more than 10 years Hearing is less on injured side Outer ear looks infected You think you need to be seen, but the problem is not urgent Contact Doctor During Office Hours You have other questions or concerns	Self Care at Home Minor ear injury

Few drops of blood in the ear canal. Caused by a minor injury, cotton swab or ear exam.
Injury causes an earache
Dirty cut or hard to clean and no tetanus shot in more than 5 years
Clean cut and no tetanus shot for more than 10 years
Hearing is less on injured side
Outer ear looks infected
You think you need to be seen, but the problem is not urgent

For cuts and scrapes, use an antibiotic ointment (such as Polysporin). No prescription is needed.
Put it on the cut 3 times a day.
Do this for 3 days.
Cover large scrapes with a bandage. Change daily.

To help with the pain, take an acetaminophen product (such as Tylenol).
Another choice is an ibuprofen product (such as Advil). Ibuprofen works well for this type of pain.
Use as needed but do not take more than the maximum recommended dosage as stated on the packet.
If you are not sure what to take, ask a pharmacist.