Who owns my ear canals?

September 17, 2021 7:52 AM

After 18 months of using headsets for umpteen hours of video calls daily, my ear canals are unhappy--itchy, flaky, angry. My GP said it could be a dermatitis, eczema, or something else. Who is in charge of my ear canals--a dermatologist or ENT?

Also happy to take any self-care gallery from those who have had similar experiences during the pandemic. Unfortunately, the two most obvious solutions--stop using headsets for video calls, or quit my job and live in the woods far from the nightmare that is the modern world--are not currently on the table.

posted by Admiral Haddock to Health & Fitness (12 answers total)

IANYD obvs, but of your options, I'd say dermatologist. Because I'm Australian I'd say try paw-paw ointment before bothering said dermatologist. It sorts out so many skin-things. Sorry, I don't know where you are.
posted by pompomtom at 8:06 AM on September 17, 2021 [3 favorites]

ENT, they handle the ear and inner ear. Sounds like it might be surface skin issue but still an ENT specialist would be the person I'd go to first.
posted by Liquidwolf at 8:07 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

Do you have itchy or flaky skin anywhere else? Hairline, body creases, anything? I have flaky ear canals and it's psoriasis (presenting in the less-usual way - the more common one is back of hands, elbows, etc, but it's not uncommon to have "inverse" psoriasis.) I'd lean dermatologist because of my experience - that's who ultimately gave me an ointment that worked.
posted by restless_nomad at 8:12 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

I would go to an ENT first, then maybe try a derm if you’re still having issues or need some more specialized care. My experience with weird skin things, including ear canal skin weirdness, is that the treatment options are basically topical antibiotics, topical steroids, or topical antifungals. An ENT will be more familiar with options that are safe for ears and available formulated as ear drops than a derm, and should also be able to do cultures etc. to help diagnose whatever is going on if needed.
posted by MadamM at 8:14 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

Are you using an over/on the ear headset or in the ear earbuds? If you are using earbuds or on the ear style you may want to a different style of headset.
posted by tman99 at 8:22 AM on September 17, 2021 [4 favorites]

I have flaky ear canals and it's psoriasis .

Same here. I had it so bad before my psoriasis (which I have in and behind my ears, on the lower back of my head and around my eyes) was diagnosed that it actually blocked off water draining properly and I couldn't hear out of one ear for a couple of weeks. You could try some over-the-counter Psoriasin to see if that helps and then seek a prescribed topical corticosteroid if it does.
posted by urbanlenny at 8:44 AM on September 17, 2021

I wear behind the ear hearing aids with a speaker that goes in the ear, they're uncomfortable after several hours, more so when I wear a headset over them. I'd buy new earpiece covers for any headsets, new rubber fittings for ear inserts, and figure out how to really clean and disinfect any that don't have a replace-able cover of any sort, like earbuds. I have to fiddle with my ears a lot because of masks, hearing aids, glasses all using the space on top of and behind my ear, and I occasionally get minor infections. Maybe use an antibiotic was on the external parts of the ear, leaving the ear canal alone, of course.
posted by theora55 at 9:02 AM on September 17, 2021

Regardless, if wait times for appointments are long, I'd book one of each for now. Where I live the wait for dermatologists is months long.
posted by trig at 9:05 AM on September 17, 2021 [2 favorites]

There are headsets that transmit sound through the bones in your head, which before you get into the doctor could help. I've tried bone conduction headphones briefly and they seemed to work fine.

I wear headphones ~8hrs a day and the big open back headphones that go completely over your ear have treated me pretty well. Though with something like that you'd need a microphone which your computer maybe already has or a cheap USB microphone.
posted by gregr at 9:16 AM on September 17, 2021

My dermatologist referred me to the ENT for my similar ear issue, so maybe that's helpful for you, too.
posted by halfbuckaroo at 11:04 AM on September 17, 2021

I had this so bad that I'd get swimmer's ear over and over—started itchy, then became very painful, ears canals swollen almost completely shut, total horrorshow.

The third time, the Urgent Care doc told me I needed to go see an ENT. The ENT said, "Yeah, I see this all the time," and prescribed me a homemade ear rinse and an antifungal cream. The treatment is the same whether the root cause is psoriasis, eczema, or dermatitis—just prevent any bacteria, yeast, or fungi from taking up residence while your skin is busy hating itself. If I follow the regimine (ear rinse each morning, anti-fungal cream twice a week) I avoid itching and pain.

You can start with the ear rinse before you get the appointment. It's just 50% white vinegar and 50% rubbing alcohol. Use a dropper to basically fill up the ear canal in each ear and then let the mixture run out into a towel.

And, yeah, try a different headphone situation, if you can.
posted by BrashTech at 11:50 AM on September 17, 2021 [4 favorites]

ENT. Sounds to me like maybe otitis externa, but could be something else. But this is definitely in the ENT's scope of practice. (I'm an audiologist).
posted by Lutoslawski at 12:38 PM on September 17, 2021 [1 favorite]