Ear Syringing - Trends from a Young Ent Practice in Nigeria

Background: Ear syringing is a procedure by which the external auditory canal is irrigated with saline at body temperature. It is a common otorhinolaryngology clinic procedure. This study aims to find out the trends of ear syringing as seen in a tertiary health institution in Nigeria. Methodology: The study was a retrospective review of all patients that were managed with ear syringing in the department of Otorhinolaryngology, Federal Medical Center Birnin Kebbi, Nigeria, over a four year period. Results: A total of 557 patients consisting of 290 males and 267 females with M: F 1.1:1. The ages of the patients ranged from 1 – 86years. Syringing was done in 26.4% in the right ear, 30.2% in the left ear and 43.5% in both ears. Majority of the syringing were done by ENT trained nurses. About Ninety percent (90.7%) of the patients had successful syringing once and had subjective improvement in hearing. Complications were recorded in 5% of the patients. The complications were vertigo 0.7%, external auditory canal abrasion 2.2% and failure of procedure in 2.2%. Most (98.0%) complications occurred among the nurses while the remaining complications (2%) occurred with the resident ENT medical officers. Conclusion: Trends of ear syringing have not changed. Ear syringing, though may appear simple should be performed with care. Proper training and re training with particular attention to the technique of syringing as well as to contraindications to syringing to make the procedure safe and cost effective are advised.