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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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How To Treat An Infected Ear Piercing?

I have an ear piercing that is infected for about a month. It is an old piercing and I always ware platinum in this hole. It has spread to my other piercing. It burns and itches. I have been putting alcohol and antibiotic ointment on it but it seems to be getting worse and swollen. Help.
Wed, 28 Oct 2015
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Dentist,  's  Response
Hi...
Welcome to HEALTHCARE MAGIC..

I have gone through your query and can understand your concerns...

As per your complain it seems like an allergic reaction to the metal that you are wearing in your ear as there is burning and itching and it is happening on both the ear holes..
The first thing that you should do is to gently remove the ear rings so that if it is a reaction to metal it will stop happening.
You can clean the ear piercing site and ear lobes with an antiseptic solution and apply a combination of triple antibiotic ointment and a steroid ointment as steroid will help in reducing swelling and inflammation..
Take a short course of antibiotics like Amoxicillin and anti-inflammatory painkiller like Ibuprofen or diclofenac potassium to reduce inflammation.
Do cold compresses over the ear lobes..
Once the infection subsides you can ear gold or plastic earrings as they are inert materials and does not cause reactions..

Hope this information helps..

Thanks and regards.
Dr.Honey Nandwani Arora.
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How To Treat An Infected Ear Piercing?

Hi... Welcome to HEALTHCARE MAGIC.. I have gone through your query and can understand your concerns... As per your complain it seems like an allergic reaction to the metal that you are wearing in your ear as there is burning and itching and it is happening on both the ear holes.. The first thing that you should do is to gently remove the ear rings so that if it is a reaction to metal it will stop happening. You can clean the ear piercing site and ear lobes with an antiseptic solution and apply a combination of triple antibiotic ointment and a steroid ointment as steroid will help in reducing swelling and inflammation.. Take a short course of antibiotics like Amoxicillin and anti-inflammatory painkiller like Ibuprofen or diclofenac potassium to reduce inflammation. Do cold compresses over the ear lobes.. Once the infection subsides you can ear gold or plastic earrings as they are inert materials and does not cause reactions.. Hope this information helps.. Thanks and regards. Dr.Honey Nandwani Arora.