As soon as you notice problematic earwax, we’d recommend a medical-grade olive oil. It’s gentle on the skin and helps to soften the earwax, without causing the dryness, itchiness, flaky skin or irritation that can be experienced with other chemical solutions.

In the lead-up to your appointment, we’d encourage patients to apply olive oil twice a day for a few days. This should be sufficient to soften the wax, aiding the safe removal of the blockage. Milder symptoms may be alleviated by olive oil alone. We recommend Earol, which features an easy-to-use applicator. We can provide this, should you need it.

There are a number of at-home earwax treatments that we do not advise trying yourself. You can find more in-depth information on this in our blog post.

Ear syringing

Ear syringing is an outdated method of earwax removal, which has lost popularity over the years in favour of ear irrigation. Syringing squirts water directly into the ear, whereas irrigation introduces water into the ear via a specially adapted earpiece.

Hopi ear candles

These are used in ‘ear coning’ or ‘thermal auricular therapy’. Amongst other reasons, ear candling is not normally performed by a trained ENT professional, so there is no clinical inspection of the ear to check for any medical reasons the procedure should not be carried out. Furthermore, scientific methods have clinically-proven results.

Did you know we offer emergency appointments?

If you would like to book an emergency appointment, please make sure that you have been putting olive oil in your ears twice a day for a few days before coming to see us. Without this, the wax may be too hard, and we may not be able to treat your problem. Please allow approximately 45 minutes for the appointment.