It may be a surprise to many that approximately 20% of all ear infections happen to adults. The common notion is that ear infections are something that normally affect kids. And it’s accurate that ear infections are more prevalent in kids, 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 uncomfortable ways. Additionally, when hearing aids are not correctly 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. Ear infections can cause significant inflammation 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 loss and you start to notice the symptoms of an ear infection, you might begin to wonder: did my hearing aids cause my ear infection? Technically, the answer is no. But more nuance is needed to understand the whole story.
Nearly all ear infections are caused by bacteria or a virus that gets into the ear. There are a wide variety of vectors that can result in infection. In some circumstances, the inner ear becomes infected after a past illness (for example, a sinus infection or a cold). In other situations, fluid buildup may result in an infection. And it’s also definitely possible for viruses and bacteria to infect the inner ear through simple transmission.
For people who wear hearing aids, this can be a frequent occurrence. Your hearing aid collects this bacteria or virus and then gets inserted directly into your ear. Correct hearing aid cleaning and maintenance is crucial for this reason. So the virus or bacteria is actually the cause of the infection, not the hearing aid itself. 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? To understand what to expect, it’s useful to look at the most prevalent symptoms of an ear infection. Here are several of the most common symptoms of ear infections:
- A feeling of fullness or pressure in the ears
- Temporary loss of hearing in some cases
- Ear pain
- Inflammation and swelling
- Vertigo or dizziness
- Drainage of fluid from the ear
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
Not everyone will experience every symptom, of course. In the majority of circumstances, your infected ear will be painful and there will most likely be noticeable inflammation around the inner ear. For those with hearing loss, these symptoms can interact unfavorably with your hearing aids. 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. When fluids cannot drain, your discomfort may become prolonged. This will also increase the pressure (and pain) you feel in your ears. This pressure can be even more pronounced when you’re wearing your hearing aid.
The functionality of your hearing aid can also be impacted by the excess moisture. So your ears are in more pain and your hearing aid doesn’t really work as well as it should. This means that you will have a horrible time wearing your hearing aid while you have an ear infection.
Ear infection & hearing aid solutions
You might now be thinking: my hearing aids annoy me when I have an ear infection… but what can I do? There are a number of steps you can take to reduce your risk of developing ear infections and to address the discomfort that an ear infection may cause. Those steps include the following:
- 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 reduce the risk of it becoming severe or prolonged.
- Practice good ear hygiene: It’s essential to keep your ears dry and clean and regularly clean your outer ear. However, you should never stick any object in your ear and that includes cotton swabs. Using cotton swabs can push earwax and other debris further into your ear, increasing your chance of developing an infection. You’re attempting to accomplish the exact opposite.
- Regularly clean your hearing aids: Keeping your device clean can reduce the chance of transmitting bacteria or viruses to your ears. If you don’t know how to clean and disinfect hearing aids, talk to us for a quick tutorial.
- Talk to your hearing specialist: Think about coming in to have your hearing aid re-fit if your ear infection clears but your hearing aid is still uncomfortable.
- Take breaks from wearing your hearing aids: If the pain is persistent or severe, it’s all right to take a break from wearing your hearing aid until your ears feel better. During this time off, you can adopt other means of communicating with your loved ones (like texting or writing messages on a piece of paper, and so on).
You most likely depend heavily on your hearing aid every day. They help you communicate with family and friends and move around the world more easily. Which means that these little devices can often be difficult to give up, even for a short time. However, taking a break from your hearing aids while you have an ear infection can help you recover from your illness more quickly and more comfortably. That means you can get back to enjoying what you hear faster.
Ear infections are relatively common. But you should still get treatment if you detect symptoms. If you have questions about how ear infections may affect your hearing aid use, give us a call today.