A system of practical medicine. By American authors. Vol. 4

by Unknown

The PROGNOSIS is to be guarded until the condition of the middle ear is known.

TREATMENT.—If the mass is hard in its character, its removal is best effected by the forceps or curette or blunt hook, it being understood that the external canal is well illuminated, so that the course of the instrument can be carefully watched. The curette or blunt hook will loosen the attachments of the mass to the sides of the canal, and then it can be readily removed by the forceps, care being taken not to injure the tympanic membrane. In such a way a hard plug can be removed at one sitting that otherwise would require repeated efforts to accomplish the same purpose.

If these instruments are not at hand, the next best method is to effect the removal with the syringe and warm water. A caution is to be given in the use of the syringe. There are a great number of people who are not able to have the external ear syringed, even though gently, without becoming giddy, and if the syringing is then continued the vertigo will end in a fainting attack. My rule is to caution the patient of the above fact, and always promptly stop at the first symptom of vertigo. Sometimes a short rest will allow the operator to proceed, but often it is necessary to postpone any further attempt at removal until a succeeding day. Always use quite warm water. If in a fair trial with the syringe it is found that the mass does not soften and break up, it is better to make an application of olive oil to it, and at a subsequent time repeat the attempt at removal. Soft masses of cerumen are best removed by the use of warm water and the syringe.

In some few cases inflammation of the external auditory canal will complicate the treatment, and the question will come up as to whether it is best under such circumstances to attempt the removal of the impacted mass. As a rule, the removal of the mass is the best means of combating such an inflammation, and therefore an attempt at removal should be made unless the inflammation is very acute, when treatment of this complication would be in order, and the removal of the plug deferred for the moment. In all cases the condition of the middle ear and hard pharynx should be noted after the removal of the impacted mass, and these parts often will need treatment.

Furuncle of External Auditory Canal (Acute Circumscribed Inflammation).

ETIOLOGY AND PATHOLOGY.—In a great number of cases furuncle is to be regarded as an evidence of general bodily debility. For example, in the richer classes it is often a result of over-dissipation, while in the poorer classes insufficient food, bad clothing, and such like are important factors. Local irritations of the external canal may cause the disease, such as rubbing the canal with a hairpin or toothpick to relieve itching. The use of alum and nitrate-of-silver washes in the canal will cause a furuncle in some cases. Furuncle occurs in the outer third of the canal as a rule, and often develops around a ceruminous gland, and will generally be followed by a number of others.

SYMPTOMS.—Pain is the most marked one—in the beginning of the attack of an intermittent character, with a tendency to increase toward and in the night; but as the attack advances pain becomes more marked, and may extend over the entire temporal region well down into the neck. The jaw movement also becomes very painful. The furuncle will rupture at any time, from the third day up to the tenth day, according to its location. The more deeply seated it is, the slower will be its progress toward maturity. The pain quickly disappears after the rupture, and then a short interval of rest is followed too often by the recurrence of the same disease. A varying degree of deafness is usually present, due to partial closure of the canal by the swollen soft tissues, and also it may be in rare cases through involvement of the tympanic cavity in the inflammation. Fever is often present. The great objective symptom will be the circumscribed swelling found in the cartilaginous portion of the canal and often along its anterior wall, and will show great increase of pain by but slight pressure. The swelling as it matures becomes more circumscribed, and will end in a pus collection and subsequent rupture.

DIAGNOSIS.—The disease most likely to be confounded with it would be an acute middle-ear inflammation, with involvement of the periosteum of the osseous part of the canal; but the history of the case would clear up this point.

The PROGNOSIS is favorable as to hearing, but with great probability of successive crops of the same disease.

TREATMENT.—The local application of heat and moisture is a remedy of great value, and a good method of application is to bend the head into a horizontal position, as by resting the side of the head on a table, and then fill up the external canal with water as warm as the ear will allow without causing pain; then quickly place over the auricle towels that have been dipped in very warm water and wrung dry by being twisted in a second towel, and over this a large pad of warm flannel or some similar covering. The heat and moisture will be retained for quite a time, and then the procedure can be repeated until relief from pain is obtained. In the interval the auricle is to be covered with a pad of cotton. A steam atomizer furnishes a convenient way of applying heat and moisture. Dry heat is sometimes preferred: a flannel bag filled with bran or hops and well warmed in a hot oven would carry out this indication; also a hop pillow moistened by hot whiskey is a good application.