Knowledge Attitude and Practice of Self-Ear Cleaning among Medical Students at KIST Medical College Teaching Hospital

Abstract

Introduction: Cerumen (wax) production occurs naturally in the ear. External auditory canal cleans itself by conveyer belt process of epithelial migration, which is aided by jaw movement. There is practice of using various materials to clean the ear. Cerumen is considered as dirt by majority. This study was conducted to find about knowledge, attitude, and practice of self-ear cleaning among medical students.

Methods:The cross-sectional study carried out among undergraduate medical students in KIST Medical College and Teaching Hospital. Total 377 students were enrolled after getting written informed consent. The questionnaire was used to assess knowledge, attitude and practice of self-ear cleaning. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 25.

Results:We found 84.6% believes wax is normal substance present in ear canal. There were 66.8% of students who believed that the cotton buds use could cause ear injury but 47.5% thinks that self-ear cleaning is beneficial. Regarding reason for ear cleaning, 60.5% reported hygiene.

The most common object used for self-ear clean was cotton bud 91.5%. Almost 50.9 % reported to have no history of any complications following ear cleaning. Regarding the attitude of students toward ear cleaning 59.9 % agreed self-ear cleaning can cause complication. When asked about whether ear cleaning aids should be used to clean ears 56.5% agreed.

Conclusion:There is an erroneous belief that there is benefit to its use. There is a need to increase awareness about the harmful effects of self-ear cleaning.