Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsPictures of Ear CanalAnatomyEar ConditionsClogged Ear CanalTreatment
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Pictures of Ear Canal
Anatomy
Ear Conditions
Clogged Ear Canal
Treatment
The ear canal is also called the externalacoustic meatus, outer ear, or auditory canal. It is the part of the ear that starts at the eardrum (between the outer andmiddle ear) and continues to the cartilage outside the ear. It is made of bone and cartilage.
Viewing pictures of the ear canal can help you to envision how a condition like infection, affecting up to 85% of children at some point, is affecting the ear.They can help you to understand how symptoms of earwax buildup, cysts, and other conditions can occur, and why a healthcare provider may be needed to treat an ear condition.
Kemal Yildirim / Getty Images
Here’s what the ear canal looks like to help understand how the ear canal can occasionally become blocked.
Anatomy and Function
The ear canal is the hollow tube portion of the ear that connects thepinna, or outer cartilage portion, to theeardrum. It is about 1 inch long and 1/4 inch wide; it is smaller in children and larger in adults.It consists of bone, closer to the eardrum, and cartilage, which is closer to the outer ear.
Ear Conditions and Symptoms
The ear canal is susceptible to symptoms such as ear discomfort, pain, or difficulty hearing. One of the most common ear canal conditions is ear infection, though many other causes can affect the ear canal.
Blockage
Since the ear canal is small, it can become blocked and lead to symptoms. Although its primary role is to clean and protect the ears from infection,earwaxbuildup is a common cause of clogged ear canals. Other causes of ear blockage includewaterand small objects inside the ear canal.
Symptoms of a blocked ear canal include:
Otitis Externa (Outer Ear Infection)
Infection of the ear canal, also called outer ear infection, swimmer’s ear, orotitis externa, affects 10% of people at some point in their lives.This condition is common among babies and young children. It is treatable, and most cases are mild.
Symptoms of ear canal infection include:
Apart from bacterial or viral infection, other causes can include afungal ear infection, which typically affects the outer part of the ear canal.
Cyst
Symptoms of ear canal cysts include:
Cholesteatoma
Acholesteatomais another type of abnormal growth that can form near the eardrum. Clearing the ear canal can help an ear, nose, and throat specialist (otolaryngologist) to better visualize the growth and the related inflammation of an irritated ear canal.
While a cholesteatoma isn’t typically serious, it can lead to complications if left untreated.
Symptoms can include:
Stenosis
Symptoms of stenosis affecting the ear include:
Relapsing Polychondritis
Relapsingpolychondritis(RP) is a rare autoimmune disorder that affects the cartilage in the body. In addition to serious effects on the heart, lungs, and other organs, RP can affect the ear and ear canal.
Nearly half of all people diagnosed with RP will experience ear symptoms.It’s also not unusual for them to be diagnosed with another autoimmune condition, likelupusor rheumatoid arthritis.
Ear Cancer
Ear cancertypically starts as skin cancer on the outer cartilage of the ear or the ear canal.It can affect the cartilage, bone, and other parts of the ear, especially if it spreads.
Symptoms of ear canal cancer include:
How to Open a Clogged Ear Canal
The best way to open aclogged ear canaldepends on the cause of the clog, as follows:
It is crucial to seek the support of a healthcare provider if the clog does not go away quickly or if there is pain, discomfort, difficulty hearing, or an object or growth in the ear. The condition may be serious, and treatment will depend on the underlying cause.
If you’ve been dealing with a feeling of fullness in your ear canal and haven’t had success with at-home treatments, follow up with a healthcare provider. There are various causes for this sensation, and a healthcare provider can help identify the cause to determine the best course of action to relieve and treat your symptoms.
Summary
The ear canal is the hollow tube connected to the eardrum and the outer ear. Since the ear canal is small and is a filter for the eardrum, it can become clogged and lead to symptoms such as a feeling of fullness, difficulty hearing, and dizziness.
It is possible to treat a clogged ear canal and other concerns affecting the ear canal at home. Reach out to a healthcare provider if your symptoms do not go away.
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14 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Academy of Family Physicians.Otitis media: rapid evidence review.Voss SE, Horton NJ, Fairbank KE, Xia L, Tinglin LRK, Girardin KD.Measurements of ear-canal cross-sectional areas from live human ears with implications for wideband acoustic immittance measurements.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. 2020;148(5):3042-3051. doi:10.112/0.0002358Johns Hopkins Medicine.How the ear works.American Academy of Audiology.Ear wax blockage.Wiegand S, Berner R, Schneider A, Lundershausen E, Dietz A.Otitis Externa.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2019 Mar 29;116(13):224-234. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2019.0224McCarty Walsh E, Hanson MB.Fungal Infections of the External Auditory Canal and Emerging Pathogens.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):909-918. doi:10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.010Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Benign ear cyst or tumor.Mount Sinai Center for Hearing and Balance.Cholesteatoma.Pachpande TG, Singh CV.Diagnosis and treatment modalities of cholesteatomas: a review.Cureus. 2022;14(11):e31153. doi:10.7759/cureus.31153Mankekar G, Entezami P.Acquired Stenosis of the External Ear Canal.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):919-931. doi: 10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.012Bandari V, Aguilar BH.A Case of Relapsing Polychondritis: Unmasking the Otitis Externa Mimic.Cureus. 2024 Jul 8;16(7):e64070. doi:10.7759/cureus.64070Stanford Medicine.Ear cancer.Harvard Medical School.Got an ear full? Here’s some advice for ear wax removal.Penn Medicine.Benign ear cyst.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Academy of Family Physicians.Otitis media: rapid evidence review.Voss SE, Horton NJ, Fairbank KE, Xia L, Tinglin LRK, Girardin KD.Measurements of ear-canal cross-sectional areas from live human ears with implications for wideband acoustic immittance measurements.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. 2020;148(5):3042-3051. doi:10.112/0.0002358Johns Hopkins Medicine.How the ear works.American Academy of Audiology.Ear wax blockage.Wiegand S, Berner R, Schneider A, Lundershausen E, Dietz A.Otitis Externa.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2019 Mar 29;116(13):224-234. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2019.0224McCarty Walsh E, Hanson MB.Fungal Infections of the External Auditory Canal and Emerging Pathogens.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):909-918. doi:10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.010Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Benign ear cyst or tumor.Mount Sinai Center for Hearing and Balance.Cholesteatoma.Pachpande TG, Singh CV.Diagnosis and treatment modalities of cholesteatomas: a review.Cureus. 2022;14(11):e31153. doi:10.7759/cureus.31153Mankekar G, Entezami P.Acquired Stenosis of the External Ear Canal.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):919-931. doi: 10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.012Bandari V, Aguilar BH.A Case of Relapsing Polychondritis: Unmasking the Otitis Externa Mimic.Cureus. 2024 Jul 8;16(7):e64070. doi:10.7759/cureus.64070Stanford Medicine.Ear cancer.Harvard Medical School.Got an ear full? Here’s some advice for ear wax removal.Penn Medicine.Benign ear cyst.
American Academy of Family Physicians.Otitis media: rapid evidence review.
Voss SE, Horton NJ, Fairbank KE, Xia L, Tinglin LRK, Girardin KD.Measurements of ear-canal cross-sectional areas from live human ears with implications for wideband acoustic immittance measurements.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. 2020;148(5):3042-3051. doi:10.112/0.0002358
Johns Hopkins Medicine.How the ear works.
American Academy of Audiology.Ear wax blockage.
Wiegand S, Berner R, Schneider A, Lundershausen E, Dietz A.Otitis Externa.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2019 Mar 29;116(13):224-234. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2019.0224
McCarty Walsh E, Hanson MB.Fungal Infections of the External Auditory Canal and Emerging Pathogens.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):909-918. doi:10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.010
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.Benign ear cyst or tumor.
Mount Sinai Center for Hearing and Balance.Cholesteatoma.
Pachpande TG, Singh CV.Diagnosis and treatment modalities of cholesteatomas: a review.Cureus. 2022;14(11):e31153. doi:10.7759/cureus.31153
Mankekar G, Entezami P.Acquired Stenosis of the External Ear Canal.Otolaryngol Clin North Am. 2023 Oct;56(5):919-931. doi: 10.1016/j.otc.2023.06.012
Bandari V, Aguilar BH.A Case of Relapsing Polychondritis: Unmasking the Otitis Externa Mimic.Cureus. 2024 Jul 8;16(7):e64070. doi:10.7759/cureus.64070
Stanford Medicine.Ear cancer.
Harvard Medical School.Got an ear full? Here’s some advice for ear wax removal.
Penn Medicine.Benign ear cyst.
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