Micro-suctioning earwax out seems to be one of the most common methods used by ENTs here. It seems the vast majority of the time it’s safe. Granted, there are unfortunately still cases of people incurring trauma to their eardrums from (ostensibly clumsy) doctors. Avoidable damage to your hearing isn’t something to be taken lightly.
I’ve had multiple bad experiences with doctors here from different departments. Simply going somewhere “on the fly” and complying with a doctor without prior knowledge to identify potential BS isn’t something I want to do.
* Is there a consensus on the best approach in terms of safety? (e.g. another approach might be loosening wax with liquid from a syringe followed by manual removal with forceps)
* Does wet/dry earwax matter here?
* Any recommendations for a specific doctor/clinic/hospital would be greatly appreciated (in the Tokyo region). JP/EN both completely fine.
Thank you.
6 comments
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My doctor uses forceps. Do you happen to live in Nagoya?
I go to an ENT in Chiyoda and they use either suction or a metal tool depending on the job. The suction is very unpleasant. I think you could maybe just ask them to avoid it? Otherwise I think there are ear cleaning kits for home if you think you can do better, they have a camera built in and everything
“Did you know that Japanese people have dry earwax and all foreigners have wet earwax?”
“I’m pretty sure Chinese and Korean people have dry earwax too”
“😡”
Micro suction is gold standard outside Japan, but it may be an issue of the ENT being less experienced with wet earwax?
Ear syringing is no longer recommended.
Suction is regarded as the gold standard – because water, tools etc run the risk of perforating the eardrum.