*From a forwarded mail [quote]My husband had ear pain for a very long time, sometimes he would just visit a private doctor and get some antibiotics and ear drops and after applying it over a few days, the pain would be gone. He got a habit of using cotton buds to clean his ear canals everyday after his bath. Just normal cotton buds that we can purchase at any shop at 3 for $1. Lately, the problem became quite serious to the fact that he couldn't sleep at night and one day, unable to control the pain even after taking his medicine... He went to see a doctor in the middle of the night and was referred to the Alexandra Hospital where they prescribed stronger antibiotics and an appointment to see a specialist. Upon visiting the specialist, he advised my husband to never use a cotton bud to clean his ears again, after using a special equipment to remove whatever dirt was remaining very deep in the ear as a result of using the cotton bud. The doctor said that cotton bud was never invented to clean ear canals but to clean superficial items or just surface wounds and to apply medicine.Small pieces or particles on the cotton bud tend to remain in the ear canal and that gives opportunity for bacteria to breed and by using a cotton bud, the dirt in the ear is actually being thrust further into the ear canal, hindering its self-clearing process. Some people tend to thrust the cotton bud very deep into the ear and this may result in the damage of the ear drum and a operation may be needed to correct the problem. The doctor's advised was to use olive oil, just one or two drops into the ear once a month and the ear will actually cleanse itself, thereafter to use a tissue paper to clean just the outermost part of the ear. My husband has since stopped using cotton buds and has fully recovered. The above piece of information is given by the specialist at Hospital. You may check with any doctor to verify the information.[/quote]