Itchy ears driving me mad

[BG2015]

I'm 56, post menopausal and I'm on tablets to stop my body producing oestrogen after breast cancer in 2021. Im on these for another 7 years or so. They have given me a lot of side effects but I persevere with them as the alternative could be worse.

My ears have become terribly itchy, they are flaky and sore and I've had 3 ear infections in the last 10 months. They become so dry and sore that I use Vaseline or castor oil on them and they become infected with scratching.

Antibiotics and optimize spray sort them out but the cycle just repeats.

It's driving me crazy.

It can be eczema. After years of suffering on and ff, I finally saw a dermatology consultant and she prescribed a stronger steroid cream and it clears it up in a couple of days.

Me too...awful the itch, the wetness , then infected and painful parotid glands...endless antibiotics.
I use earcalm every day and before showering.
But think I'll try steroids cream on cotton bud

Let the nizrol foam run in your ears when you rinse.

I am dry and itchy everywhere, and just make sure to moisturise far more often than I want to. Every time I wash my hands, I add handcream then swipe a finger round my ear, or on my elbows, or under the arch of my foot.

I have some bio oil gel that I don’t rate, but when I mix it with inadequate body lotion the mixture is great!

And no itching. When I itch it gets so, so much worse. My fingernails damage the skin and it gets infected- totally blocked and needing the cl-ear drops.

Isn't it partly going to depend on the cause? Antihistamines mostly does it for me,but it's particularly linked to hayfever in my case. Daktacort is antifungal, I think, though it might also contain soothing ingredients. Though our cat was prone to fungal jnfections of the ears, so it might be exactly the right thing. I would expect hydrocortisone to do more if it's eczema or similar. And when I had an actual infection, antibiotic drops did the job.

If you're reacting to shampoo, common causes are ingredients like SLS (sodium laurel sulphate) and other things which are in many products, including bubble bath and shower gel, so it might be worth working out exactly what is causing the problem.

I use earplugs when swimming, showering or bathing after going to ENT last year (it was clear I wasn't going to agree to the suggestion of giving up swimming.) They are kept by first aid in some pharmacies, rather than by ear drops, which would have been more logical to me.

When I was prescribed Daktacort some years ago, not for ears, the pharmacist said it would be cheaper to buy over the counter as I paid for prescriptions. So thst might be worth bearing in mind, too.

I went to Boots yesterday and the pharmacist refused to sell me any Hc45 Cream as I was going to be using it above my shoulders! He actually laughed at me as though I was the most ridiculous 56 year old woman he'd ever seen.

Went to another Boots and lied, got some! Put a tiny bit on the outside of my ear so we will see what happens.

I've had this for years too and a doctor once mentioned possible eczema but I don't remember any mention of cream - they did suggest oil. I'm going to try the cream suggested above.

I second asking for a swab if you haven't already - mine was once fungal and Otomize was only clearing up the symptoms.

Yikes!

Admittedly, I was using DH's which had been recommended for a small rash... on his foot.

I wonder what the problem with it is... 😬

Mine keep itching at night too.

Im not menopausal as had FSH checked recently due to having ovaries but no uterus after hysterectomy a few years ago.

Im 44 so could be peri? Not sure if hormones show this up?

But my god it’s driving me mad 😠

I had this. And my ears would become blocked with dry hard ear wax & need unblocking every few months. I bought one of those ear wax removers with a camera on the end & remove the wax myself every few weeks & it seems to have resolved the eczema as a result

Used the cream about 6 times now and it’s definitely improved. I used it really sparingly and shall stop once it feels better.