Please Suggest What Medicine Should I Take For I Have Hard Crusty Stuff Around The Perimeter Of My Ear Canal

Posted on Wed, 3 Jun 2020

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Wed, 3 Jun 2020 Answered on

Tue, 7 Oct 2025 Last reviewed on

Question : I Have hard crusty stuff around the perimeter of my ear canal. It itches and when I scratch it it comes off but that sometimes causes fluid to drain from my ear. It dissolves if water gets into my ear but it always comes back the next day. I’m currently on amoxicillin for a tooth infection.

Answered by Dr. Naveen (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Seborrheic Dermatitis...

Detailed Answer:
Hi

Thanks for posting the query

I have gone through the query and understood the problem. You seem to be suffering from Seborrhoeic Dermatitis.

This is an inflammation of the external ear canal skin caused due to excess turnover of the scales over the skin. This is one of the commonest ENT problems one come across in the out patient department.

The best remedy for this is:
1. Clean the ear canal with a clean damp cloth or cotton 2-3 times a day. This removes the crusts and help the skin to breathe.
2. Apply a cream with a combination of anti fungal and corticosteroid cream. This helps in reducing the inflammation and the crusting.
3. Avoid constant probing of the ear.
4. Drink plenty of water.

With the above measures you should get better. Revert back to me if you have any follow up queries.

Regards
Dr. Naveen Kumar N
ENT and Head & Neck Surgeon

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Nagamani Ng