It may be a surprise to many people that roughly 20% of all ear infections occur in adults. Most individuals think of ear infections as a childhood sickness, something that affects primarily young kids. And it’s true that ear infections are more common in children, but they also happen frequently in adults.
For adults with hearing impairments or hearing loss, ear infections can be especially inconvenient, as they can interact with hearing aids in some unpleasant ways. Also, when hearing aids aren’t properly maintained, they can become a vehicle for ear infection-causing diseases.
So is it a bad idea to use hearing aids with an ear infection? Overall, the answer is yes, but you might not want to. Hearing aids could aggravate the discomfort and inflammation caused by an ear infection. However, there are some steps that those who use hearing aids can take to help avoid and manage ear infection symptoms.
Do hearing aids cause ear infections?
If you’re an adult with hearing loss and you begin to notice the symptoms of an ear infection, you might begin to wonder: did my hearing aids cause my ear infection? The technical answer is no. But more nuance is needed to understand the complete story.
Almost all ear infections are caused by bacteria or a virus that gets into the ear. There are a number of paths that bacteria and viruses can take on their way to becoming an infection. In some cases, the inner ear becomes infected after a past illness (for instance, a sinus infection or a cold). An infection might be caused by fluid accumulation in other instances. And it’s also definitely possible for viruses and bacteria to infect the inner ear via simple transmission.
This can occur with some frequency to people who wear hearing aids. Your hearing aid collects this bacteria or virus and then gets inserted directly into your ear. That’s why it is crucial for people with hearing loss to properly maintain and clean their devices. In other words, the hearing aid itself does not cause the ear infection, the virus or bacteria does. But your hearing aid is involved in this transmission.
How ear infections interact with hearing aids
So what is the level of interaction between hearing aids and ear infections? To understand what to expect, it’s helpful to look at the most prevalent symptoms of an ear infection. Here are a few of the most prevalent symptoms of ear infections:
- Swelling and inflammation
- A feeling of fullness or pressure in the ears
- Drainage of fluid from the ear
- Temporary loss of hearing in some cases
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
- Dizziness or vertigo
- Pain in the ear
Obviously, everyone will experience the symptoms in their own way. In most cases, your infected ear will be painful and there will likely be obvious swelling around the inner ear. These symptoms can have an adverse interaction with hearing aids for people 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 soreness as they aggravate the tender inflamed infected ear.
Also, with a hearing aid that sits mostly inside the ear canal, fluid drainage can be obstructed. Your infection and discomfort may last longer if fluid is trapped in your ear. The pain and pressure in your ears will be increased as a result of this. This pressure can be even more marked when you’re wearing your hearing aid.
This increased moisture can also impede the function of your hearing aid. So your ears are in more pain and your hearing aid isn’t really working as well as it should. This means that you will have a horrible time wearing your hearing aid while you have an ear infection.
Strategies to wearing hearing aids with an ear infection
So what can you do if your hearing aids are annoying you during an ear infection? There are several steps you can take to lower your risk of developing ear infections and to manage the discomfort that an ear infection may cause. Here are a few of those steps:
- Practice good ear hygiene: This means routinely cleaning your outer ear and, generally, keeping your ears dry and clean. Do not try to stick anything in your ear, however, including cotton swabs. Using cotton swabs can drive earwax and other debris further into your ear, increasing your risk of developing an infection. 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 while if you have significant or lasting pain. During this time off, you can pursue other means of communicating with your loved ones (like texting or writing messages on a piece of paper, and so on).
- Regularly clean your hearing aids: Keeping your device clean can decrease the risk of transferring bacteria or viruses to your ears. If you don’t know how to clean and disinfect hearing aids, talk to us for some instruction.
- Talk to your hearing specialist: If your ears begin to feel better, but the discomfort from your hearing aids doesn’t recede, consider 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, speak with your doctor as soon as possible. Treating a hearing aid as soon as possible will reduce the chance of it becoming severe or prolonged.
You probably depend heavily on your hearing aid every day. They help you get around your world more easily and have better communication with your family and friends. That makes it really difficult to give up your hearing aid even for short periods. However, you will have a speedier recovery from your ear infection if you take a break from wearing them until you heal up. That means you can get back to enjoying what you hear faster.
It’s not uncommon for people to get ear infections. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t seek out treatment or try to prevent them. If you have questions about how ear infections might affect your hearing aid use, give us a call today.