Otitis externa Health Dictionary

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Otitis Externa: From 2 Different Sources

Swimmer’s ear. Inflammation of the outer ear.

Causes: fungal or bacterial infections acquired when swimming, scratching with dirty fingernails, diabetes mellitus, eczema or excessive sweating.

Symptoms: earache, itching, discharge, moderate deafness.

Alternative Treatment:– Tea. Combine equal parts: Nettles, Clivers, Red Clover. 1-2 teaspoons to each cup boiling water; infuse 5-15 minutes. 1 cup thrice daily.

Tablets/capsules. Echinacea. Blue Flag. Garlic. Poke root. Red Clover. Devil’s Claw. Thuja.

Powders. Combine parts: Echinacea 2; Blue Flag 1; Thuja quarter; Liquorice quarter. Dose: 500mg (two 00 capsules or one-third teaspoon) thrice daily.

Tinctures. Combine parts: Echinacea 2; Devil’s Claw 1; Goldenseal quarter; Liquorice quarter. Dose: 1-2 teaspoons, thrice daily.

Evening Primrose. 4 × 500mg capsules daily.

Cider Vinegar: 2-3 teaspoons in glass water, 2-3 times daily.

Topical. Dry conditions: Jojoba oil, Mullein oil. Evening Primrose oil.

Moist suppurative conditions: Goldenseal Drops (see entry).

Simple inflammation without discharge: warm drops Houseleek juice. Pack external ear with saturated cotton wool.

Diet and supplements: same as for otitis media. 

Health Source: Bartrams Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine
Author: Health Encyclopedia
An ear infection affecting the outer-ear canal. Otitis externa usually causes inflammation and swelling, discharge, and, in some people, eczema around the opening of the canal. The ear may be itchy and painful and blocked with pus, causing deafness.

Generalized infection of the canal, and sometimes of the pinna (external ear), may be due to a fungal or bacterial infection. The ear may also sometimes become inflamed as part of a generalized skin disorder such as atopic eczema or seborrhoeic dermatitis.

Often, the only treatment required for otitis externa is to keep the ear thoroughly clean and dry until the infection has cleared.

Locally acting preparations containing antibiotic drugs, antifungal drugs, or corticosteroid drugs may be used.

Oral antibiotics may be given to treat severe bacterial infections.

Health Source: BMA Medical Dictionary
Author: The British Medical Association

Otitis

In?ammation of the EAR. (See EAR, DISEASES OF.)... otitis

Otitis Media

Inflammation, infectious or sterile, of the middle ear. In children this is often complicated by fluid buildup behind the eardrum. This raises the anxiety levels of conscious parents, debating the three-decade-old question, “Antibiotics?”. They may fear the realistic (and unrealistic) effects of the drug, weighed against the anguish of a center-of-attention complaining child and the knee-jerk agitation they feel (particularly the mother...see OXYTOCIN). Then, when three months of antibiotic therapy doesn’t work for some children (and they now show the brand-new signs of having become allergic...”No connection with the antibiotics at all” sez the pediatrician), the parents have descended to another level of Parent Bardo...”Tubes in his ears?!” You can guess my feelings. I am not, however, suggesting ignoring your pediatrician. There are presently strong, if minority, medical currents against these approaches...you may have a Ped. that starts with antibiotics the first day and practically pre-schedules a three-month-away intubation visit...Let Your Fingers Do The Walking (see YELLOW PAGES). Another BabyDoc may not want to use antibiotics UNLESS other measures have failed and there is the extended presence of pus behind the eardrum. Turning away from such conservative an approach can hurt the kid...and is giving the careful physician a session in Negative Reinforcement Therapy. “Antibiotics Ÿber alles!” proclaims a banner in the waiting room next visit, and there may be a case displaying the newest line of Swatch Eartubes.... otitis media

External Cardiac Compression

Compression of the outside of the sternum and ribs, effectively emptying and filling the heart to push blood through arteries to supply oxygen to the body - particularly to the brain.... external cardiac compression

External Validity

See “validity”.... external validity

Otitis Media – Glue Ear

Secretory form. A common form of inflammation of the middle ear in children and which may be responsible for conduction deafness.

Causes: chronic catarrh with obstruction of the Eustachian tubes of dietetic origin. Starchy foods should be severely restricted. The ear is clogged with a sticky fluid usually caused by enlarged adenoids blocking the ventilation duct which connects the cavity with the back of the throat.

Conventional treatment consists of insertion of ‘grommets’ – tiny flanged plastic tubes about one millimetre long – which are inserted into the eardrum, thus ensuring a free flow of air into the cavity.

Fluid usually disappears and hearing returns to normal.

Tre atme nt. Underlying cause treated – adenoids, tonsils, etc. Sinus wash-out with Soapwort, Elderflowers, Mullein or Marshmallow tea. Internal treatment with anti-catarrhals to disperse. Alternatives:– German Chamomile tea. (Traditional German).

Teas. Boneset, Cayenne, Coltsfoot, Elderflowers, Eyebright, Hyssop, Marshmallow leaves, Mullein, Mint, Yarrow.

Powders. Combine: Echinacea 2; Goldenseal quarter; Myrrh quarter; Liquorice half. Dose: 500mg (two 00 capsules or one-third teaspoon), thrice daily.

Tinctures. Combine: Echinacea 2; Yarrow 1; Plantain 1. Drops: Tincture Capsicum. Dose: 1-2 teaspoons thrice daily.

Topical. Castor oil drops, with cotton wool ear plugs, Oils of Garlic or Mullein. If not available, use Almond oil. Hopi Indian Ear Candles for mild suction and to impart a perceptible pressure regulation of sinuses and aural fluids.

Diet. Gluten-free diet certain. No confectionery, chocolate, etc. Salt-free. Low-starch. Milk-free. Abundance of fruits and raw green salad materials. Supplements. Vitamins A, B-complex, C. E. ... otitis media – glue ear

Secretory Otitis Media

An alternative name for glue ear.... secretory otitis media

Automated External Defibrillator

(AED) a type of external *defibrillator that can analyse the heart rhythm it detects and advise via voice prompts on therapy to be given according to the latest guidelines. In cases of ventricular fibrillation, some defibrillators will make decisions on delivering electric shocks and do so after issuing appropriate warnings to the attending health-care professionals.... automated external defibrillator

Enhanced External Counterpulsation

(EECP) an experimental treatment for patients with intractable angina. Specially designed inflatable trousers are inflated rhythmically in time with ventricular *diastole. Theoretically this imparts additional energy to the circulating blood volume when the heart is relaxed, and this may improve blood flow down severely narrowed coronary arteries. It is also claimed to have beneficial effects on blood flow to other organs. Despite promising clinical trials, this technique has not been widely adopted.... enhanced external counterpulsation

External Beam Radiotherapy

see teletherapy.... external beam radiotherapy

External Fixator

an apparatus consisting of a rigid frame that connects pins passed through the skin into the bone above and below a fracture. This immobilizes the fracture, and is used particularly to treat some compound fractures. An external fixator is also used for *limb lengthening.... external fixator

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