Argh! Ear wax and flying Saturday!

[Verbena17]

Hi - quick panic question!
My son is due to fly abroad Saturday lunchtime and has just told me his ear is completely blocked with wax! We leave for the airport with overnight stay tomorrow. It’s all a bit tricky as he’s autistic and so he has sensory difficulties and is worried his eardrum will burst.

There are zero appointments for tomorrow anywhere near us and he’s previously had it micro-suctioned which helped.

Any ideas? It’s a very long 13 hour flight and he’s worried he’ll get a burst eardrum.
Putting oil in it last time did nothing.

Any ideas?

Where are you flying from? Maybe you can find a suction place near airport

https://amzn.eu/d/9iDKnxb
I just use this for mine and it works wonders. Admittedly I don't have sensory issues, but do the clinics also use water in the ear? Sorry if it's no help.

You can get an Otex product that will soften the earwax, and that comes with a bulb syringe that you can use to gently rinse out the ear with warm water.

i have remover stubborn earwax from my ears this way. I do also have a syringe with a special tip for ear syringing, which I also use, but if I remember correctly, I bought it on Amazon, so it might not arrive in time.

You do have to be careful not to syringe the ear too hard. I am willing to take the risk for myself, but it’s up to you, if you think it is worth it.

Thanks - he did use Otex last time it happened (not flying then) and it stung a lot.
The micro suction person said using Otex wasn’t a good idea and they recommend oil.
ive just put some olive oil in it to help soften and then not sure.
Im worried warm water to wash it out will stay in it and not make its way out.

Just seen flight ear plugs to help with pressure so going to pop up to Boots now to see if they have some.

Thinking about it, tons of people must have blocked ears without realising then fly mustn’t they?

Ear wax shouldn’t cause any issues with flying.

Phew - thanks everyone! Feel much better eater about it now.
i went to the chemist and got some ‘Ear Planes’ ear plugs and when I got home, he had partially cleared it himself by washing it out gently with the warm shower spray.

Hopefully he’ll be ok.

Have you tried bicarb of soda? It does fizz a bit, so not sure if he will take to it. You can get drops at the chemist

Even with micro suction they usually recommend olive oil for a few days anyway to soften .
As you say air travel should have no impact on his ears and maybe a quick Google to look it up will confirm and ease any concerns he may have .

Hydrogen peroxide 6% solution will fix it. A few drops in the ear with the head lying on a table (towel underneath). It fizzes like mad though.

And that breaks it up?
and then wash it out with water again?

I actually had my ears microsuctioned yesterday as Im travelling soon and was advised to use a spray decongestant pre flight as this helps with airplane ear. Apparently I had signs of congestion which can be a problem when flying. The wax I had may have contributed to the congestion, as my eardrum was totally covered. Maybe if you have some spray to hand that might be worth using. Clear tubes are less likely to have problems when flying she said! Have a lovely holiday!

Why would the ear drum burst?? Ear wax is in the outer part. An ear drum can burst if there is something (normally mucosity)inside the ear...

Hydogen peroxide loosens it and the fizzing releases the wax easily. A quick rinse afterwards. Old school American home medical knowhow.

Oh that’s a great idea! Not entirely sure he’ll use a spray though, so there’s that but Ikll suggest it. Thanks.

I’m not sure - from intense pressure on the drum? The last time he had it micro suctioned, she said there was a lot of wax sitting on the drum.

I think she said a decongestant tablet would work too. Sinutab or similar.

Some boots and spec savers have ear wax removal services, worth trying to get an apt.

Looked up about HP6% but it says it can irritate the ear and he does have some eczema and sensitive skin so not sure that’s a good idea this time.
But I do love the old school hydrogen peroxide uses for medical stuff - I’ve read up quite a lot about it.

There are none for tomorrow am. We leave at midday to go to Heathrow and he’s extremely anxious so looking for somewhere down there on Good Friday wouldn’t work sadly.

I’m a GP, please reassure him his ear drum 100 percent won’t burst because of flying with wax, that has nothing to do with it. As a pp said the wax is in the outer part of the ear, yes it might sit against the eardrum but that’s ok. For wax issues unlike with eg a middle ear infection, there is no change in pressure in the middle ear (the bit behind the eardrum). So no problem that flying would make worse because pressure changes are irrelevant to the outer ear where the wax sits.

I also have a neurodiverse teenage son with earwax issues so I get it. Probably too late for this trip but for future reference, I ended up buying this off Amazon which is an amazing bit of kit and super easy to set up (not sure if I’d have had the confidence to use it without medical training but if you’re very cautious and careful not to accidentally puncture the eardrum basically I think it would be fine). Though in the interests of full transparency my son freaked out about it feeling “hot” (it’s warm to help melt wax but by no means uncomfortably hot but he clearly has very sensitive ears) so it was a one and done thing that he let me do it. I use it on myself for mine though 🤣

www.amazon.co.uk/VITCOCO-Otoscope-Removal-Wireless-Endoscope/dp/B09TL158TJ?pd_rd_w=vV8dL&content-id=amzn1.sym.98a3380d-28bf-4331-b97e-3cb6f35d811c&pf_rd_p=98a3380d-28bf-4331-b97e-3cb6f35d811c&pf_rd_r=EBKN1H82S9DC2M5QHSPB&pd_rd_wg=e6BK0&pd_rd_r=23145962-c79d-4cf5-87b3-930505508cfb&pd_rd_i=B09TL158TJ&psc=1&ref_=pd_basp_m_rpt_ba_s_2_ped_sc

Try more olive oil than you’d think! - 5/6 drops not 1 or 2. The Cl-ear ear spray is very easy to use - much simpler than drops.
I had a really blocked ear microsuctioned and they couldn’t shift a stubborn bit, added loads of olive oil to help soften and advised me to keep doing the same for another 4/5 days before going back for round 2. Worked fine - had cleared mostly in a couple of days.

Thanks so much - that’s great to hear and I’ll take a look at the removal kit you’ve linked.

I use the syringe similar to the one linked upthread. Special tip. Just fill with warm water and rinse out the ear.
I use it on autistic DC who doesn’t tolerate syringing and it works very well.