LOR pulciņa dalībnieku Lindas Veideres, Andas Arbidānes, Ievas Grīnbergas, Aleksandras Borovikas, Janas Skrules, Matīsa Karantajera, Kristinas Karganovas, Anetes Gustas, Ievas Muižnieces, Danas Mičules, Jūlijas Ivanovas, Edgara Bobrova, Ilzes Leves, Dr.Sabīnes Attes ZPD "THE IMPACT OF COTTON SWAB USE ON THE EXTERNAL AUDITORY CANAL". Prezentēts RSU ISC 2016. Darba vadītāja Dr.Gunta Sumeraga.

1. 1
THE IMPACT OF COTTON SWAB USE
ON THE EXTERNAL AUDITORY CANAL
Authors: Linda Veidere1, Anda Arbidāne1, Ieva Grīnberga1, Aleksandra Borovika1,
Jana Skrule1, Matīss Karantajers1, Kristina Karganova1, Anete Gusta1, Ieva Muižniece1,
Dana Mičule1, Jūlija Ivanova1, Edgars Bobrovs1, Ilze Leve1, Sabīne Atte1, 2
Scientific research supervisor: Gunta Sumeraga, MD1, 3
1Faculty of medicine, Rīga Stradiņš University, Latvia
2Children`s Clinical University Hospital, Latvia
3Pauls Stradins Clinical University Hospital, Latvia

2. 2
Should they?
Many people use cotton swabs to clean their ears.
http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2013/07/12/q-tip-debate

3. 3
It expels mix of dead epithelial
cells, dust and cerumen by
outward migration of the
epitelium, helped by jaw
movement 1, 2, 3, 4
Ear is a self-cleaning organ
http://ruthestimarmd.com/why-q-tips-are-harmful-to-your-ear/

4. 4
 Otitis externa 1, 3, 4, 5, 6
 Cerumen impaction 4, 5, 6
 Tympanic membrane perforation 4, 5, 6
Misuse or overuse of cotton swabs
Dhillon R.S., East C.A. The Ear. In: Ear, Nose and Throat and Head and Neck Surgery. pp 1-28

5. 5
 To assess the frequency of the cotton swab use among students of
Rīga Stradiņš University
 To rate external auditory canal skin changes and cerumen plug
formation among students who use and do not use cotton swabs
Aim

6. 6
 A prospective study was conducted, involving students of Rīga Stradiņš
University, Latvia.
 An annonymous survery and otoscopic examination was performed.
 The obtained data were statistically processed with MS Excel and IBM SPSS
software.
Materials and Methods

7. 7
 The study involved 405 students
»68.4% (n = 277) female
»31.6% (n = 128) male.
 69.1% (n=280) of the respondents
used cotton swabs, 30.9% (n = 125)
did not use cotton swabs at least
one year.
Results
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
30.9%
(n=125)
69.1%
(n=280)
Students in each group
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs

8. 8
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
How long have You used cotton swabs?
61.5%
15.8% 15.8%
5.3%
1.5%
All my life 10 years 5 years
2 years 6-12 months
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
How often do You use cotton swabs?
13.2%
38.9%
27.2%
13.6%
7.2%
Every day 2-3 times a week
Once a week Once in 2 weeks
Less often
Frequency of the
cotton swab use:
Time period of the use
of cotton swabs:

9. 9
Skin condition of the external auditory canal:
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs
87.3%
78.9%
12.7%
21.1%
Right ear
Normal skin Traumatized skin
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs
84.1%
77.9%
15.9%
22.1%
Left ear
Normal skin Traumatized skin
p=0.044 p=0.145

10. 10
Lumen of the external auditory canal:
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs
74.6%
79.6%
19.8%
16.4%
5.6% 3.9%
Right ear
<50% obstruction >50% obstruction Cerumen plug
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs
77.8% 80.4%
14.3% 16.1%
7.9% 3.6%
Left ear
<50% obstruction >50% obstruction Cerumen plug
p=0.502 p=0.164

11. 11
 Students in the group who used cotton swabs more frequently didn’t know that cotton swabs should not
be used for cleaning ears.
 On the other hand – majority of the students who used cotton swabs knew that they shouldn’t be used.
Knowledge that cotton swabs should not be used for
cleaning ears:
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Did not use cotton swabs Used cotton swabs
88.7%
67.3%
11.3%
32.7%
Yes No
p=<0.000

12. 12
 Cotton swabs are widely used among students of Riga Stradiņš University,
although most of the students know, that they should not be used.
 In the group who used cotton swabs, traumatized skin in the external
auditory canal was observed more often on the right side.
 Unlike described in medical literature, significant relevance between use of
cotton swabs and cerumen impaction was not observed among students of
Riga Stradiņš University.
Conclusions

13. 13
 Cotton swabs were developed in 1923 and used for many purposes. It became
a medical concern only in 1972. 4, 5
 Hobson and Lavy (2005) oserved that majority of patients used cotton swabs
because «It seems like a good idea» (89%, n=52) and «Family and friends
use them» (49%, n=25). 4
 Despite the cotton swabs manufacturers’ warning a large number of people
use cotton buds to clean and scratch the ear canal, in many cases without
coming to harm so the actual risk remains to be elucidated. 4, 5
Discussion

14. 14
1. Dhillon R.S., East C.A. The Ear. In: Ear, Nose and Throat and Head and Neck
Surgery. pp 1-28
2. Klein J.O. Otitis Externa, Otitis Media, and Mastoiditis. In: Mandell, Douglas, and
Bennett's Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. Chapter 62, pp 767-773
3. Scholes M.A. Infections of the Ear. In: ENT Secrets. Chapter 37, pp 256-261
4. Hobson J.C., Lavy J.A. Use and abuse of cotton buds. In: J R Soc Med 2005;
98:360–361
5. Yang H.C., Cho Y.B. Cho H.H. Retained Cotton Bud-induced Severe Otitis Externa
That Mimics Malignant Otitis Externa. In: International Journal of Gerontology
2015; 9:52-53
6. Lee L.M., Govindaraju R., Hon S.K. Cotton Bud and Ear Cleaning - A Loose Tip
Cotton Bud? In: Med J Malaysia 2005; 60(1):85-88
Literature

15. 15
Thank You!