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Cotton swab
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== Medical risks == [[File:Cotton swabs (or cotton buds) -in round container.jpg|thumb|Cotton swabs in a round container]] Using cotton swabs in the ear canal has no associated medical benefits and poses definite medical risks.<ref>{{citation |last=Moser |first=Rod |url=http://blogs.webmd.com/all-ears/2006/11/q-tips-weapons-of-ear-destruction.html |title=Q-Tips โ Weapons of Ear Destruction? |publisher=WebMD |date=13 November 2006}}</ref><ref>{{citation |first=Joel |last=Stein |url=http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,105556,00.html |title=Something Evil in the Ear Canal |magazine=Time |date=26 March 2001}}</ref><ref name="AAFP" /><ref>{{Cite web|url = http://commonhealth.wbur.org/2012/11/q-tips-ears-danger|title = Why You Really, Truly Should Not Put Q-Tips Into Your Ears|website = commonhealth|access-date = 6 March 2016}}</ref> [[Cerumen]] (ear wax) is a naturally occurring, normally [[extruded]], product of the [[external auditory canal]] that protects the skin inside the ear, serves beneficial [[lubrication]] and cleaning functions, and provides some protection from bacteria, fungi, insects, and water.<ref>{{cite journal|last=McCarter|first=Daniel F.|title=Cerumen Impaction|journal=American Family Physician|date=May 2007|volume=75|issue=10|pages=1523โ1528|pmid=17555144|url=http://www.aafp.org/afp/2007/0515/p1523.html|access-date=5 September 2012|display-authors=etal}}</ref><ref>[http://american-hearing.org/disorders/ear-wax/#whatis Earwax] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130210075904/http://american-hearing.org/disorders/ear-wax/#whatis |date=10 February 2013 }} at the American Hearing Research Foundation. Chicago, Illinois 2008.</ref> Attempts to remove cerumen with cotton swabs may result in [[Earwax#Excess earwax (impacted cerumen)|cerumen impaction]], a buildup or blockage of cerumen in the ear canal, which can cause pain, hearing problems, ringing in the ear, or dizziness, and may require medical treatment to resolve.<ref name="AAFP">{{cite journal|last=American Academy of Family Physicians|title=Information from Your Family DoctorโEarwax: What You Should Know|journal=American Family Physician|date=May 2007|volume=75|issue=10|pages=1530|url=http://www.aafp.org/afp/2007/0515/p1523.html|pmid=17555145}}</ref> The use of cotton swabs in the ear canal is one of the most common causes of [[perforated eardrum]], a condition which sometimes requires surgery to correct.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Smith|first=Matthew|author2=Darrat|title=Otologic complications of cotton swab use: One institution's experience|journal=The Laryngoscope|date=February 2012|volume=122|issue=2|pages=409โ411|doi=10.1002/lary.22437|pmid=22241624|s2cid=206199065}}</ref> A 2004 study found that the "use of a cotton-tip applicator to clean the ear seems to be the leading cause of [[otitis externa]] in children and should be avoided."<ref name="Nussinovitch">{{cite journal|last=Nussinovitch|first=Moshe|title=Cotton-tip applicators as a leading cause of otitis externa|journal=International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology|date=April 2004|volume=68|issue=4|pages=433โ435|url=http://www.ijporlonline.com/article/S0165-5876(03)00484-1/abstract|access-date=5 September 2012|doi=10.1016/j.ijporl.2003.11.014|pmid=15013609|display-authors=etal|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Instead, wiping wax away from the ear with a washcloth after a shower almost completely cleans the outer one-third of the ear canal, where earwax is made.<ref>{{cite news|date=9 January 2018|title=Don't use cotton-tipped swabs to clean inside your ears, experts urge|language=en-CA|work=CBC News|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/eardrum-perforations-cotton-swabs-1.4479551|access-date=10 January 2018}}</ref> In the US between 1990 and 2010, an estimated 263,338 children went to hospital emergency rooms for cotton swab injuries, accounting for an estimated annual hospitalization of <!-- 263338 / 20 -->13,167 children.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Ameen|first1=Zeenath S.|title=Pediatric Cotton-Tip Applicator-Related Ear Injury Treated in United States Emergency Departments, 1990โ2010|journal=The Journal of Pediatrics|volume=186|pages=124โ130|date=1 May 2017|doi=10.1016/j.jpeds.2017.03.049|pmid=28473166|url=http://www.jpeds.com/article/S0022-3476(17)30461-4/fulltext|access-date=10 May 2017|doi-access=free}}</ref>
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