It may be a surprise to many that approximately 20% of all ear infections happen to adults. Most people think of ear infections as a childhood ailment, something that impacts mainly young kids. Ear infections are definitely more prevalent in children but adults do get them too.
Ear infections can be particularly unpleasant for people with hearing loss because they can interact with their hearing aids. Hearing aids can also harbor germs that could result in an ear infection if they aren’t properly cleaned and maintained.
So is it a bad plan to use hearing aids with an ear infection? Overall, the answer is yes, but you may not want to. Ear infections can cause considerable swelling and discomfort in the ear, and your hearing aids might worsen those symptoms. But people who use hearing aids can take a few steps to treat and possibly prevent ear infections.
Can an ear infection be caused by hearing aids?
If you’re an adult with hearing impairment and you start to notice the symptoms of an ear infection, you might begin to wonder: did my hearing aids cause this ear infection? Technically, the answer is no. But in order to get the full picture we need to look at it in greater detail.
The vast majority of all ear infections are due to viruses or bacteria that then infect the inner ear. There are quite a few paths that bacteria and viruses can take on their way to becoming an infection. Sometimes, a previous illness, such as a cold or sinus infection, will lead to an infection of the inner ear. An infection might be caused by fluid accumulation in other instances. And it’s also certainly possible for viruses and bacteria to infect the inner ear via simple transmission.
For people who use hearing aids, this can be a frequent occurrence. Your hearing aid collects this bacteria or virus and then gets inserted directly into your ear. That’s why it is critical for individuals with hearing impairments to properly maintain and clean their devices. Essentially, the hearing aid itself doesn’t cause the ear infection, the virus or bacteria does. But your hearing aid does play a part in this transmission.
Interactions between hearing aids and ear infections
So, how do ear infections and hearing aids interact? The best way to anticipate what to expect is to examine the most common ear infection symptoms. Here are some of the most common symptoms of ear infections:
- Swelling and inflammation
- Ear pressure or a feeling of fullness
- Vertigo or dizziness
- Drainage of fluid from the ear
- Tinnitus (a ringing in the ears)
- Ear pain
- In some situations, temporary hearing loss
Not everyone will suffer from every symptom, of course. Typically, you will have obvious inflammation of the inner ear and ear pain in the infected ear. These symptoms can have an adverse interaction with hearing aids for those with hearing loss. That’s because the hearing aid goes inside the infected ear (at least some of it). Your hearing aids could cause added discomfort as they irritate the tender inflamed infected ear.
Also, with a hearing aid that goes mostly inside the ear canal, fluid drainage can be blocked. Your infection and discomfort may last longer if fluid is trapped in your ear. This will also increase the pressure (and pain) you feel in your ears. This pressure can be even more marked when you’re wearing your hearing aid.
This added moisture can also impede the operation of your hearing aid. So your ears are in more pain and your hearing aid isn’t really working as well as it should. Which means that wearing hearing aids when you have an ear infection can be an absolutely miserable time.
Strategies to wearing hearing aids with an ear infection
So what can you do if your hearing aids are bothering you during an ear infection? You can lower your risk of getting an ear infection and address any discomfort that an ear infection might cause by taking a few steps. Those steps include the following:
- Practice good ear hygiene: It’s important to keep your ears clean and dry and routinely clean your outer ear. However, you should never stick any object in your ear and that includes cotton swabs. With a cotton swabs, your chance of developing an ear infection increases because you could jam earwax and debris further up into your ear canal. You’re attempting to accomplish the exact opposite.
- Take breaks from wearing your hearing aids: You can take a break from your hearing aids for a few days if you have significant or lasting pain. During this time off, you can pursue other ways of communicating with your loved ones (like texting or writing messages on a piece of paper, and so on).
- Talk to your hearing specialist: If your ears begin to feel better, but the discomfort from your hearing aids doesn’t recede, think about talking to us to see if you can get a better fit on your devices.
- Talk to your healthcare provider: If you think that you have an ear infection, talk to your doctor as soon as you can. Treating a hearing aid as soon as possible will decrease the chance of it becoming severe or prolonged.
- Regularly clean your hearing aids: Keeping your device clean can reduce the risk of transmitting bacteria or viruses to your ears. If you don’t know how to clean and disinfect hearing aids, talk to us for some instruction.
Hearing aids are most likely a crucial part of your everyday life. They help you navigate your world more easily and have better communication with your friends and family. That makes it very difficult to give up your hearing aid even for short periods. However, you will have a quicker recovery from your ear infection if you take a break from wearing them until you heal up. This will help you get back to feeling better sooner.
It’s not uncommon for individuals to get ear infections. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get treatment or try to prevent them. Contact us if you’re wondering how your hearing aid use will be impacted by an ear infection.