Bleeding Ear Canal

Bleeding from your ear canal can be scary. Fortunately the majority of cases look worse than they actually are.

Causes for Bleeding Ear Canal

• Home ear cleaning. Probably the most common cause for bleeding ear canals is people cleaning or scratching the inside of their ear canals with sharp fingernails, toothpicks, or q-tips which scratch or cut the surface skin.
• Infections of the outer ear can lead to enough irritation and swelling of the underlying skin to cause bleeding with contact. Middle ear infections can lead to a pressure build up which can ultimately lead to rupture and bleeding of the ear drum if not treated.
• Rarely sonic shockwave blasts from explosions or dramatic pressure changes during diving can rupture the ear drum leading to bleeding.
• Tumors of the ear can present with bleeding. Fortunately these are rare.
• Severe head trauma can lead to fractures of the bones encompassing the ear leading to bleeding trickling out of the ear canal.
• Foreign objects stuck in the ear can lead to irritation and eventual light bleeding from the ear.
• Blood thinners like aspirin or warfarin can predispose you to an ear bleed with trivial contact with the ear such as itching with your finger.

Symptoms of Bleeding Ear Canal

• There may be pain from the cause of the bleed.
• Red blood streaks or flow.
• Reduced hearing.

Bleeding Ear Canal Treatment

Bleeding from the ear should prompt a visit to your doctor where they can promptly look inside the ear with an otoscope and tell you whether this is a serious or minor cause and offer treatment.

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