"Miracle"

[Brian Ellis]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/south_west/7214066.stm

I suspect a lot of journalese in the article, but the supposed fact that the kid had a Q-tip in his lug'ole for several years is incredible. Have the quacks never heard of otoscopes in his neck of the woods?

[Fat Tone]

Unbelievable.

Although: He said: "If he was playing down the garden I would have to shout for him eight or nine times before he would respond.

"But now he has 100% hearing and he's just a normal boy again."...so we still have to shout eight or nine times

[Umfriend]

LOL, so true.

[Gurm]

Nice medicine you guys got over there. Here if the child can't hear 100% in the 1st grade, they run a battery of tests, and see multiple specialists. There? Oh, q-tips can linger INSIDE THE AUDITORY CAVITY for years? Nice.

[Fat Tone]

I wonder what sort of doctors they employ in SW Wales. Hmmm....what IS Paddy up to these days?

[Paddy]

yeah... my bad.


OK. The smallest thing that should go in your ear is your elbow. So he should never have been using cotton buds in the first place. His hearing loss can't have been 'significant' as he has normal speach development and has survived in mainstream schooling. It is feasible that the tip was covered with wax and therefore not visible with an otoscope, not that it makes it any better.

I suspect that this has been blown all out of proportion. But yes, it does make me feel silly

[Fat Tone]

Seriously? Its possible to have something THAT big go unnoticed? Why wouldn't the wax have been removed? I know my mother who has some hearing problems (operations on both mastoids) has hers syringed whenever the hearing loss gets more significant.

And who amongst us can honestly day they don't clean their ears with buds from time to time? In fact, I think I'll go do it now

[Umfriend]

I am at a loss. What is the problem with cotton buds for cleaning ones ears? Or are cotton buds not what I think they are? To let a toddler play with these, yes, that is silly.

BTW, over here they test for hearing problems regularly as of, IIRC, 12 months of age.

[Brian Ellis]

And who amongst us can honestly say they don't clean their ears with buds from time to time?

Me! Not from time to time, but very regularly.

As a kid, I had terrible problems with wax with considerable hearing loss requiring syringing every 2 or 3 months. This continued until I was about 30 when it eased off somewhat. Even now, at 75, it still happens, but the good-ole daily Q-tip with the occasional application of a medication keeps it under control without syringing. Thinking of cause and effect, on two occasions I stopped using the buds for several weeks, but the build-up of wax continued unabated. Just a natural secretion that is perhaps slightly greater than average.

I doubt whether my elbow would have been of much help!

[Fat Tone]

I think its just common sense. Its too easy to push too hard and burst the drum, and too easy to get your arm knocked whilst you are rooting around.

Cotton buds are also known as q-tips.

[Umfriend]

I think its just common sense. Its too easy to push too hard and burst the drum, and too easy to get your arm knocked whilst you are rooting around.

Cotton buds are also known as q-tips.

We're talking about hygiene here, right? Not self-mutulation. You guys make it sound like you could be the subject of some rather interesting u2b-videos.

[Fat Tone]

So even 'youtube' is too long to type now? What is the world coming to? Maybe you are too busy rooting around your ear canal to press the 4 extra keys?

[Umfriend]

YOUTUBE, there! No go and clean out your ears!

[Fat Tone]

no need to shout, now I've done that

[Gurm]

Good God, folks.

I hear that tired old sawhorse "don't put anything smaller than your elbow in your ear" ALL THE TIME from the healthcare community... but only from nurses and the uninformed. I Q-tip both ears EVERY day. Julie probably does every couple, she doesn't get waxy quite the way I do. We do the kids once every couple weeks - CAREFULLY.

If you're putting it in far enough to touch the eardrum, you're DOING IT WRONG.

And frankly, I have to do it - my psoriasis extends into my ear canals, and there's only one effective way to deliver cortisone... you guessed it...