{"id":1605,"date":"2021-07-29T13:52:38","date_gmt":"2021-07-29T18:52:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/?p=1605"},"modified":"2021-07-29T13:52:40","modified_gmt":"2021-07-29T18:52:40","slug":"helpful-tips-if-you-encounter-swimmers-ear-this-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/helpful-tips-if-you-encounter-swimmers-ear-this-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"Helpful Tips if You Encounter Swimmer\u2019s Ear This Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Swimmer\u2019s ear is <a href=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/ent\/ear\/ear-infection\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">an infection of the ear canal <\/a>caused by water becoming trapped, as this creates the perfect environment for bacterial growth. Symptoms include itchiness of the ear canal, redness around the ear, <a href=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/ent\/ear\/earache\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pain<\/a> or discomfort, feeling of fullness, drainage, hearing loss and fever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Below we review how to prevent swimmer\u2019s ear and how it can be treated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Preventing Swimmer\u2019s Ear<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/summer-beach-ball-pool-protect-hearing.jpg\" alt=\"A beach ball floating in a pool.\" class=\"wp-image-1607\" width=\"347\" height=\"194\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/summer-beach-ball-pool-protect-hearing.jpg 1189w, https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/summer-beach-ball-pool-protect-hearing-768x432.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 347px) 100vw, 347px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Below are some helpful tips for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mayoclinic.org\/diseases-conditions\/swimmers-ear\/diagnosis-treatment\/drc-20351688\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">preventing swimmer\u2019s ear<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><strong>Keep your ears dry<\/strong>. You can do this by wearing a swim cap or swim plugs. Foothills ENT and Allergy and Hearing Center offers custom-molded swim plugs for maximum comfort and protection.<\/li><li><strong>Dry your ears after swimming<\/strong>. First, tip your head to each side for a few minutes to allow water to drain. Then, use a towel or hair dryer on the lowest setting to dry the ears out.<\/li><li><strong>Choose your swimming spot wisely<\/strong>. If you want to swim at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.visitknoxville.com\/listings\/fort-loudoun-lake\/1031\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Fort Loudoun Lake<\/a>, be sure to look out for signs stating whether bacterial counts are high. If they are, opt for a different spot.<\/li><li><strong>Don\u2019t put foreign objects in the ear<\/strong>. Putting something in your ears, even if it\u2019s a finger or cotton swab, can break the delicate skin and introduce bacteria.<\/li><li><strong>Leave earwax alone<\/strong>. Earwax helps trap bacteria and prevent infection.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Treating Swimmer\u2019s Ear<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you notice the symptoms of swimmer\u2019s ear listed above, it\u2019s important to see a doctor right away. Swimmer\u2019s ear itself is not dangerous, but the infection could get worse if left untreated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To diagnose swimmer\u2019s ear, an ENT physician will first perform a physical exam of your ear using an otoscope, which is a lighted instrument. They\u2019ll also ask when your symptoms began and whether you\u2019ve been swimming recently and where.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are several ways swimmer\u2019s ear can be treated, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Cleaning the ear to allow eardrops to flow through the ear canal using a suction device or ear curette.<\/li><li>Administering eardrops that contain a combination of acidic solution to restore the ear\u2019s antibacterial environment, steroid to reduce inflammation, antibiotic to fight bacteria and\/or antifungal to fight infection caused by fungus.<\/li><li>Prescribing pain medications like ibuprofen or acetaminophen to ease discomfort.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For more information about preventing or treating swimmer\u2019s ear or to schedule an evaluation, call Foothills ENT and Allergy and Hearing Center today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><ul class=\"related-posts\"><li><a href=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/how-to-care-for-your-child-when-they-have-an-ear-infection\/\" class=\"related-post\">How to Care for Your Child When They Have an Ear Infection<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/common-ent-symptoms-to-look-out-for-this-year\/\" class=\"related-post\">Common ENT Symptoms to Look Out for This Year<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/can-anxiety-cause-tinnitus\/\" class=\"related-post\">Can Anxiety Cause Tinnitus?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Swimmer\u2019s ear is an infection of the ear canal caused by water becoming trapped, as this creates the perfect environment for bacterial growth. Symptoms include itchiness of the ear canal, redness around the ear, pain or discomfort, feeling of fullness, drainage, hearing loss and fever. Below we review how to prevent swimmer\u2019s ear and how&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1607,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"Swimmer\u2019s ear is an infection of the ear canal caused by water becoming trapped, as this creates the perfect environment for bacterial growth.","_seopress_robots_index":"","schema":"","fname":"","lname":"","position":"","credentials":"","placeID":"","no_match":false,"name":"","company":"","review":"","address":"","city":"","state":"","zip":"","lat":"","lng":"","phone1":"","phone2":"","fax":"","mon1":"","mon2":"","tue1":"","tue2":"","wed1":"","wed2":"","thu1":"","thu2":"","fri1":"","fri2":"","sat1":"","sat2":"","sun1":"","sun2":"","hours-note":"","locid":"","rating":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1605"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1605"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1605\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1609,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1605\/revisions\/1609"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1607"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foothillsentahc.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}