This video is sponsored by NordVPN. A man, circa 2017, was admitted to the emergency room after collapsing from multiple seizures and a sharp pain in his left ear. A couple years later, another woman was taken to the hospital after noticing some hearing loss and splashes of blood coming out of one of her ears as well. Soon, what was originally a minor inconvenience turned into a battle for their very lives. Little did they know that behind this brawl with Death itself was a common household item. Today’s episode will cover health myths, As with all medical topics we cover, we recommend speaking with a doctor about what is best for you and your body And with that out of the way, Let’s get into it! A 31 year old man arrived at the hospital after his fit of seizures, he told doctors that he had been experiencing pain and discharge from his left ear for about 10 days, headaches so severe that he could not help but vomit, and memory issues like forgetting people’s names. He continued, saying that he had been experiencing hearing loss and pain in the same ear for the past 5 years, and had been treated for 2 major ear infections over that time. Doctors performed a CT scan on the man’s head and discovered two abscesses, little pus filled bubbles, at the base of his skull next to his left ear canal. This suggested to doctors that his memory issues and headaches were most likely connected to something in the man’s ear. The same thing was also likely the cause of his ear infections. He was eventually diagnosed with "necrotizing otitis externa”, which is a soft tissue infection of the outer ear canal up to the eardrum. The man underwent a minor surgery to remove the infected tissue and was given oral and intravenous antibiotics to treat the infection in the long term. Lucky for him, he did not suffer any long term hearing loss, or other complications. A 37 year old woman, circa 2019, had also been experiencing hearing loss and a buzzing in her left ear on and off for a number of years. She was given antibiotics for an ear infection, but her symptoms persisted. She started to notice a brownish discharge coming from her ears, and not soon after, blood followed. Returning to her GP, he suggested a hearing test, and found that she suffered from moderate hearing loss in her left ear. Being only 37 at the time, she was obviously worried about this, and saw an ear, nose and throat specialist soon after. After undergoing a CT scan, the woman discovered that a bacterial infection was eating away at the flesh on her skull behind her ear. She needed surgery to remove the infected tissue, or else the infection would spread further, and do more damage. The bacteria had already eaten away at the bone tissue at the base of her skull leaving it almost paper-thin according to her doctors. After removing the infection, she, unlike our previous case, did suffer from permanent hearing loss in her left ear, saying that “a firecracker could go off beside my ear and I’d barely register it”. Many of us have probably suffered from ear infections before. Hopefully they’re not as severe as these folks, however you might be doing the same things they did before their rude awakening. Both infections were caused by an impacted clot of earwax, debris, and cotton. Grill: Wait, what? What was that? I didn’t hear you. What? In both cases, the patients had been using cotton swabs to clean their ears regularly, and at some point had lodged fibres of cotton in their ear canals. Then, over the course of years, the cotton collected dirt and other things you don’t want in your ear, adhered into a ball with the naturally occurring wax, and became infected, threatening their hearing, and their lives. But not all ear infections are the same though! There are a few different types of ear infections: Outer, Middle, and Inner. Outer ear infections, Otitis Externa, are sometimes thought to be the same as “swimmer's ear” primarily because they can be caused by stagnant water in one’s ear canal, however they’re usually caused by a combination of heat, moisture, and trauma aka cuts or scratches. Essentially, the tissue within the ear canal swells and feels blocked. People often attempt to clear an out ear infection with the use of a cotton swab, or hydrogen peroxide, however these solutions will only exacerbate the problem. The best way to treat an outer ear infection is to have a clinician carefully clean the infected area, and, in some cases, make use of a topical antimicrobial. Occasionally outer ear infections are caused by fungi or viruses, which require specific treatment, but an ear specialist will be able to diagnose and treat it. Our two cases specifically suffered from Necrotizing Otitis Externa, otherwise known as malignant outer ear infections. Which is basically the worst case scenario for this condition, and is defined by the infection spreading to bone tissue around the initial infection, which we saw in both of our patients earlier. Middle ear infections, called Otitis Media, are an infection of tissue between the eardrum and the inner ear. They are the most frequent affliction to young children aside from the common cold. Middle ear infections can be caused by changes in air pressure, and sometimes follow a cold. Severe infections can be recognizable by rapid onset ear pain, and muffled hearing. The need for stronger antibiotics and longer treatment is becoming more common. In some cases, surgeries like adenoidectomies, tonsillectomies, and ear tubes are necessary. If left untreated, middle ear infections can lead to permanent hearing loss, and other complications, so medical intervention is required. Inner ear infections, on the other hand, are usually not infections at all! They’re actually an inflammation of the balance centre of the inner ear, while true infections are usually only symptoms of greater conditions like meningitis which make one more susceptible to bacterial infection. Inflammation of the inner ear can be diagnosed by rapid onset dizziness, nausea, and vomiting. Treatment for an inner ear infection depends on whether it is a true bacterial infection, which they’ll treat with a course of antibiotics like with any other infection, or whether it is inflammation, which can be treated with a wide variety of over the counter drugs that your doctor may recommend. Well how the hell am I supposed to clean my ears then, without jamming a stick into my skull, huh? The cotton swab, or Q-Tip as they are also referred, has been unanimously condemned by physicians as a tool to clean our ears. It literally says, “do not insert into ear canal” right on the box. Despite this, the actual original intended use of a cotton swab was to clean one’s ear . Leo Gerstenzang invented the first cotton swab after seeing his wife wrap cotton around toothpicks to clear their baby’s ears. Like many other things we thought were good in 1920, we’ve learned in the preceding century that some things are better left in the past. The reality is that our bodies don’t require as much upkeep as we think it does. Dr. Kris Jatana, assistant professor at the Ohio State University, tells us that "The ear canal is self-cleaning, and the cotton-tip applicator actually works against your ear's natural cleaning mechanism by pushing the earwax deeper toward the eardrum, where it essentially gets trapped and can't get out on its own". In both of our cases earlier, it was fibres of cotton from a Q-Tip collecting debris and wax inside their ear canals that led to their infections. In addition to that, over 12,000 children under the age of 18 are sent to the ER for cotton swab incidents in the US per year. The majority of them were due to children cleaning their ears themselves, causing cuts, perforations in the eardrum, and dislocated the bones in their inner ears. Yikes. So it’s probably best to limit the amount of things you’re jamming all up in there. When it comes to clearing the excess wax on the outside of your ears, just wiping it away with a tissue wrapped on your fingertip carefully is more than enough. Now if you think that you might have an excess of earwax, your doctor will use a tool called an octoscope to determine what exactly your problem really is. If it is a buildup of earwax, and not something more serious like our cases were suffering, then they might perform a technique called ear irrigation to clear out your dirtiest crannies. They’ll take a syringe filled with water and a saline solution and shoot a small amount into your ear canals to dislodge any backed up chaff in there. It’s pretty uncomfortable, but ear irrigation is only necessary in severe cases. It’s significantly safer and less painful than using ear curettes, small plastic or metal rods used to scrape away wax, but this technique has the same dangers as using cotton swabs, so only medical professionals should even attempt it. There’s a Japanese art form known as Chindogu, which prides itself for creating objects that “defy explanation”. They are objects or tools that, despite being perfectly suited for a specific task, are so unique or unwieldy to the point that they are almost completely useless. For example, tiny umbrellas on your shoes, a toilet paper hat for allergy season, or a wheeled pole that you can rest your head on if your neck gets tired while you walk. That’s real, these are real things. If an item is helpful all the time, and you use it regularly, then it’s not Chindogu. Like the cotton swab, there are lots of tools that defy their original intended purpose, and more that we’ve decided aren’t even useful at all, let alone dangerous to use in the first place. My advice? If you have any extra cotton swabs lying around, use them to, I don’t know, build a little cotton cabin, or use them to clean up the edges on your nail polish. Just, don’t put them in your ear canal, please. Churry: Oh, woe woe woe woe is me. T’is the night of a thousand sadnesses. Huh-huh… Oh. Hey, Churry, what’s up? I have just learned that many of my ocean worm dramas are not available to watch in your country. Oh, that sucks. Indeed, indeed. Tonight I’ll be missing out on the newest series starring my boy, Luke Worm. But alas, you do not have the channel. Well, have you tried using something like, NordVPN? Grill: What? We already have NordVPN. Chill already did this whole shtick already. Oh, is Chill here? He could help me explain it to Churry. Uh, what now? Trying to catch up on your favorite shows and films? Worried that they’re not available in your country? Well, with NordVPN, you can avoid those pesky regional restrictions and binge with the best of them. Churry: Fascinating. Grill: Yeah, obviously. Chill come on, could you knock it off with the whole Churry thing? What’s the best part about digesting hours upon hours of digital media? Not letting anyone else know about it. With NordVPN’s double data encryption process, you can have more time to watch whatever you want and not have to worry about others watching you. Churry: Will NordVPN work on my unique devices or operating systems? Grill: Let me guess… You use an Apple device? Hah cause you’re a worm. In an apple. Churry: Actually, you’ll find that I use Linux, sir. Oh, neat. Well, NordVPN is compatible with most operating systems. 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