It may be a surprise to many that approximately 20% of all ear infections occur in adults. Most people think of ear infections as a childhood ailment, something that impacts mainly young kids. Ear infections are certainly more prevalent in children but adults do get them too.
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. Hearing aids can also shelter germs that could lead to an ear infection if they are not properly cleaned and maintained.
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 may exacerbate those symptoms. But people who use hearing aids can take a few steps to treat and possibly prevent ear infections.
Do hearing aids cause ear infections?
You might be questioning if your hearing aid is the cause of your ear infection if you’re an adult with hearing impairment. The technical answer is no. But in order to get the full picture we have to look at it in greater detail.
Nearly 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. Sometimes, an earlier illness, like a cold or sinus infection, will result in an infection of the inner ear. An infection might be caused by fluid buildup in other instances. It’s also completely feasible that a virus or bacteria directly infected the inner ear by physical transmission.
For people who wear hearing aids, this can be a regular occurrence. Your hearing aid accumulates this bacteria or virus and then gets inserted directly into your ear. That’s why it is critical for those with hearing loss 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 device might play a role in transmission.
Contact between hearing aids and ear infections
So what is the level of interaction between hearing aids and ear infections? To understand what to expect, it’s useful to look at the most common symptoms of an ear infection. Generally speaking, ear infections will present with the following symptoms:
- Tinnitus (a ringing in the ears)
- Ear pain
- Ear pressure or a feeling of fullness
- Drainage of fluid from the ear
- Temporary loss of hearing in some cases
- Vertigo or dizziness
- Swelling and inflammation
Not everybody will experience every symptom, of course. Usually, you will have obvious inflammation of the inner ear and ear pain in the infected ear. For people with hearing loss, these symptoms can interact unfavorably with your hearing aids. That’s because your hearing aid will most likely (at least partially) sit within the ear canal. Your hearing aids could cause added discomfort as they aggravate the tender inflamed infected ear.
Also, with a hearing aid that sits mostly inside the ear canal, fluid drainage can be blocked. Your infection and discomfort might last longer if fluid is stuck in your ear. The pain and pressure in your ears will be increased because of this. When you are wearing your hearing aid, pressure can be even more unpleasant.
This added moisture can also impede the function of your hearing aid. So your ears are in more pain and your hearing aid doesn’t really work 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
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 getting ear infections and to manage the discomfort that an ear infection may cause. Those steps include the following:
- Practice good ear hygiene: This means regularly cleaning your outer ear and, generally, keeping your ears clean and dry. Don’t try to stick any object in your ear, however, including cotton swabs. With a cotton swabs, your risk of developing an ear infection increases because you could push earwax and debris further up into your ear canal. You’re attempting to accomplish the exact opposite.
- Talk to your healthcare provider: You should speak with your doctor sooner than later if you suspect you may be developing an ear infection. Treating a hearing aid as soon as possible will decrease the chance of it becoming severe or prolonged.
- 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.
- Regularly clean your hearing aids: Making sure your devices are clean can help to ensure they aren’t transferring bacteria and viruses to your ears (or, at least, that it occurs less often.) Ask us for help if you’re not certain how to correctly clean and sanitize your hearing aids.
- Take breaks from wearing your hearing aids: If the pain is persistent or severe, it’s okay to take a break from wearing your hearing aid until your ears feel better. During this interim period, 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 probably depend heavily on your hearing aid every day. They help you communicate with loved ones and move about the world more easily. That makes it really difficult to give up your hearing aid even for short periods. However, taking a break from your hearing aids while you have an ear infection can help you recuperate from your sickness more quickly and more comfortably. That means you can get back to enjoying what you hear faster.
It’s not uncommon for people to get ear infections. But you should still get treatment if you notice symptoms. Contact us if you’re wondering how your hearing aid use will be affected by an ear infection.