What to do when a child puts something into his ears

When a child pushes something (non – living object) into his ears it can cause panic among the adults around him. There is a race to extract the object from the ear and get the organ of hearing back to normal. But the answer to the question “What to do when a child puts something into his ears ?” is – Don’t panic.

For what to do when there is an insect in your child’s ear – Click here.

If the object inserted is visible there is an excited panic to find a way to take it out. And if the object is not visible then there is panic to either dig in or rush to the hospital.

What is important to understand and realize however is, that there is actually no need to panic at all.

The outermost part of the ear – which is seen outside the skull is large – but the canal that it leads into is extremely narrow and also convoluted with plenty of curves and bends.

It takes considerable effort to push object into the ear. And it is usually only children who are curious about exploring their bodies and objects who manage to push objects into their ears.

Once an object is lodged in the ear canal – it is unlikely to be able to move because of the narrow space in the canal. The only thing that may cause the object to move in the ear canal is – if someone tries to extract the object from the ear or attempts to manipulate the object in any other way.

So there is no need to panic. The object is unlikely to move further inside the ear and cause any damage.

It is therefore safest to leave the object as it lies in the ear.

Do not try to remove to remove the object if it is visible – you may end up pushing the object deeper into the ear.

Also do not panic if the object is not visible. The object is most probably lying fixed in its position inside the ear. It is unlikely to move unless it is pushed.

Take your child to the doctor immediately.

An object left lodged in the ear can be dangerous. It must be taken out by a doctor immediately.

So don’t panic when something goes into your child’s ear. Just keep calm and transport your child to the doctor.

Read more about foreign bodies in the ear here