Ear Wax Removal

Ear wax is normal and useful. It traps dust, keeps the canal from drying out, and most of it works its way to the opening on its own. You only need it removed when it builds up and blocks the canal, causing muffled hearing, earache, ringing, itching or a feeling of fullness. Never dig at it with a cotton bud: that packs the wax deeper and turns a nuisance into a blockage.

NICE guidance says ear wax removal should be available through primary or community ear care services, but in practice many GP surgeries stopped offering it and there is no reliable NHS route to it in this part of London. That is why so many people now pay privately, and why patients travel to our chemist on Pinner Road from North Harrow and from Pinner.

Your appointment begins with our pharmacist looking into both ears with an otoscope. If the wax is soft enough we remove it there and then. If it is rock hard we may ask you to use oil drops for a few days and come back, which is safer and more comfortable than forcing it. If we see something other than wax — an infection, a foreign body or a suspected perforation — we stop and direct you to the right care, which may be our earache service or your GP.

Microsuction uses a fine, low-pressure suction tube under magnification to lift wax straight out of the canal. No water goes into your ear, so nothing is pushed against the eardrum and the canal stays completely dry. Because the clinician can see the wax the whole time, it is the more controlled of the two methods and works well on hard or deeply seated wax.

It is normally the method we choose when irrigation would not be safe: a past perforated eardrum, grommets, a mastoid cavity, previous ear surgery, or hearing in one ear only. Tell us about any of these when you book so we can plan the appointment properly.

The one thing everybody comments on is the noise. The suction is loud beside your ear and can feel strange for a moment, but it should not be painful. Some people feel briefly dizzy afterwards; that settles quickly. Most ears take only a few minutes once the wax has been softened at home.

Modern ear irrigation is nothing like the old metal syringe. We use an electronic irrigator that delivers a controlled jet of warm water along the wall of the ear canal so the wax floats out into a bowl. The water is kept close to body temperature, because water that is too hot or too cold makes people dizzy.

Irrigation suits soft or well-softened wax in a healthy, intact ear, and many people find it more comfortable than the noise of suction. It is not suitable if you have or have had a perforated eardrum or grommets, ear surgery, an ear infection or discharge, or if irrigation has upset you in the past. NICE advises pre-treating with wax softeners, either immediately beforehand or for up to five days in advance, which is why we ask you to do the drops at home first. If we examine you and find irrigation is off the table, we switch to microsuction in the same appointment rather than sending you elsewhere.

Let a little olive oil come up to room temperature. Lie on your side with the blocked ear facing up, put in 2 to 3 drops, and stay put for a few minutes so it runs down the canal. Repeat 3 to 4 times a day for 3 to 5 days before your appointment. Almond oil does the same job if you prefer it and have no nut allergy.

Do not use drops if you know you have a hole in your eardrum, and do not put anything into an ear that is painful, discharging or recently operated on — call us instead and we will advise. Cotton buds, ear candles and DIY suction kits are all a bad idea; ear candling has no evidence behind it and can burn the canal.

Bring a list of your medicines, mention any hearing aids, and tell us about past ear problems or surgery. Afterwards, sounds may seem unusually sharp for a day and the canal can feel sensitive, so keep the ears dry for a day or two. Patients travelling in from Northwood and Ruislip usually ask us to check both ears in one visit rather than making a second trip. To compare the options first, read our detailed guide to ear wax removal methods.