What’s The French Equivalent Of An Audiologist Who Cleans Ears?

My old-school now-retired doctor used warm water, a long rubber tube with a bulb, a kidney dish and tweezers to remove wax that had affected my hearing in one ear but not dramatically so. I enjoyed what was a new experience and was amazed at the amount of wax he removed. And at what felt like a sudden profound increase in hearing. It’s only an occasional necessity and my latest prescription was for Audispray which works for me when I get a slight hearing loss.

The occupational nurse we had back in the engineering company had a big cake icing looking syringe, back then it was ceramol drops but they would make your ears sore internally. She preferred olive oil. Once carried out and a success I used to hear the metal joins on machine drive belts clicking as the pulleys rotated. That was from outside the machine shops.

Forgive me if what follows has already been described but I haven’t read every contribution.

I’ve had bunged-up ears cleared many times by a pro - my mama, an A & E and op theatre sister - and once by 3 [three!] doctors in a hospital in Valencia.

And now I do it myself, as they did.

Olive oil - warmed as hot as you can take without burning yourself. Stand the dropper bottle in hot water. The ‘medical’ stuff I have had from pharmacies has been useless.

A couple of drops into the ear and lie <10 mins with that ear up’ards, letting the oil seep right down. Repeat with other ear if necc. Remember to put a couple of layers of tissue under the treated ear to catch the oil seeeing back out - or stain the pillow. Up to you. :grinning:

Do this > 2x day for +/- 5 days. Yes, it’s tedious but you want a max result first time.

Come the day, fill a syringe [which you have meantime bought] with warm water.

Blast the entire 300ml into your ear. Put some wellie into pushing the piston.

I do it over the basin with the plug in so I can see the results. Depending on how your hearing has now improved, repeat if necc - and then the other ear.

Could you be more specific?

Be careful not to burst your eardrum. One person’s “wellie” could be too much pressure!

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I put that sort of comment down to talking tabloid.

I had years of gummed up ear problems/infections and tried all the above remedies. Nothing really worked. I put it down to wearing ear defenders at work. When I resigned from my job and moved to France they cleared up. Not a cheap remedy but it worked for me!

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Same here with industrial setting. Probably give an annual clean now as it’s pointless having a hifi if you are not hearing the benefits

Are there really no private micro-suction services in France?

The stuff in a bottle from a pharm that I’ve been prescribed/told to buy has never been effective, in my experience.

On the other hand, warm olive oil, as widely recommended, as used by my ma [35 years in nursing inc several years i/c nursing at Catterick Camp Families’ Heath Centre] and me subsequently, has always done the job, if the somewhat tedious routine I described is followed.

I’d be very surprised if someone was able to jet the ear with such force, with one of those syringes, as to cause damage. I’ve never held back, myself, giving it more or less as much ‘wellie’ as poss. Bear in mind that what the jet encounters to start with is a plug of wax. Experience/feeling tells what progress is being made. Hearing improves. The jet starts to reach the eardrum, so one can back off a bit.

I find it most reassuring that if I have a bunged-up ear I have the means and the method to deal with it at home.

Me too on that point, although the previously mentioned Otex/Superdrug works after about 2 applications possibly a 3rd but doesn’t always require syringing