Boric alcohol - detailed instructions for use. Ear treatment with boric alcohol: pros and cons

As a rule, otitis media occurs after a cold. Ear inflammation is caused by severe pain, felt in the form of "lumbago". Boric alcohol in the ear is one of the effective remedies for inflammation in the auditory organ. This drug has a minimum number of contraindications, budget cost.

This liquid is the most popular remedy that is used for inflammatory pathologies. Such alcohol is produced by mixing ethyl concentrate with boric acid, which is the active ingredient in the solution. In pharmacies, you can find liquid of different concentrations, from 0.5% to 5%. Boric alcohol for otitis is often used as an antimicrobial agent. This medicine also fights itching very well. It is used in the form of ear drops, for rubbing into the skin around the affected organ.

How to treat the ear with boric alcohol. Areas of application of the solution.

as drops. Before dripping boric alcohol into the ear, they need to be warmed up, dripped into the ear affected by inflammation in a supine position.
For the manufacture of turundas. They need to be soaked in a solution, inserted into the organ of hearing. Such manipulations will give a disinfecting, antifungal and disinfecting effect.
Often use an ointment purchased at a pharmacy. Turunds should be soaked in balm, inserted into the ear for 15 minutes.

Otitis and boric alcohol, along with other drugs, practically does not give side effects. The tool acts quite gently, does not injure the skin. The solution can be used for medicinal purposes, both for adults and children.

Boric alcohol in the ear of a child with otitis must be diluted before instillation with water in equal proportions. Thus, the concentration of boric acid is reduced, the skin is not injured in any way.

Before using the liquid, you should check the body for allergic reactions. You can drop a little boric alcohol on the skin, wait 2 hours. If nothing has changed, the remedy can be used for medicinal purposes. Many people are interested in whether ethanol is suitable for relieving itching and pain in case of ear inflammation, is it possible to drip ethyl alcohol into the ear? This substance is used in the initial stages of external or middle inflammation of the organ of hearing.

Indications for use

Boric alcohol for earache must be used strictly following the instructions. It is important to consider possible side effects in order to avoid them. It is better not to drip the solution into the hearing organs as a preventive measure, the liquid is quite concentrated. In the ear canal with inflammation, it should be dripped for 2 weeks, as a treatment course. After the first improvements, do not stop the procedure. Painful symptoms may return. It is necessary to take into account the rules for the use of funds in order to quickly eliminate signs.

Indications for the use of the solution:

Ear ache;
sensation of itching.

This tool is usually used for ear inflammation, eczema, ringworm. The healing liquid is widely used in the treatment of infants in the form of an anesthetic and antimicrobial medicine. Unpleasant symptoms of ear pathology in babies are felt more vividly than in adults, therefore, they need to be stopped. The children's body is less hardy, babies tolerate pain worse. An alcohol solution of boric acid can be dripped into the ear with a pipette or by drawing liquid into a syringe without a needle. If the baby has pain, you should consult a doctor.

Boric acid for ear congestion is also often used as an aid. When the pain is too pronounced, it is difficult to endure, this may indicate the development of an acute form of pathology. It will not work to eliminate pain with the help of a therapeutic liquid; more powerful otitis media for children are needed. A weak solution can be used in combination with compresses to enhance the effect, but the interval between procedures should be at least 1 hour. With palpable spasms, the medication will provide first aid. People who regularly suffer from ear diseases should keep such a remedy at home.

How to treat the ear with boric alcohol

Therapeutic measures aimed at eliminating unpleasant sensations in the ear must be used in stages. What kind of alcohol is dripped into the ear? Of course, boric solution will give the fastest result. The tool is perfect for such purposes, it can be purchased at any pharmacy.

Is it possible to drip boric alcohol into the ear? Yes, but you should do the manipulations in this way:

The use of boric alcohol for the ear in the form of drops. Inject 3 drops into each ear, no more than four times a day.
Flagella as an anesthetic. It is better for children to administer a liquid with a therapeutic effect for pain in the ear with the help of twisted cotton wool or bandages. Cooked flagella are inserted into the organ of hearing for 4 hours or overnight.
Before instillation, you need to clean the ear from sulfur. In order, after the solution has entered the organ of hearing, you need to tilt your head down so that the accumulations flow out.
A compress on the ear with boric acid is done using a cloth or gauze. They need to be soaked in the solution, put to the ear, wrap the head with a scarf to enhance the warming effect.
Boric alcohol in the ear children need to drip 2 drops, no more than 3 times a day. The dosage should be less than for adults.

Before using such a solution, it is important to know how much to keep boric acid in the ear. If the liquid is used in the form of drops, after 10-15 minutes it must be drained from the organ of hearing. When using this tool in the form of turundas, keep it in your ear also for no longer than 15 minutes. Boric acid should be 3%.

Boric acid in the ear during pregnancy and breastfeeding

During the period of gestation, feeding, the female body is the most vulnerable. You can not use a number of pharmacy medicines, therefore, folk recipes are used. Boric acid is also prohibited for use during pregnancy. However, there are some exceptions.

If the girl's state of health is normal, 2% boric alcohol can be taken for medicinal purposes.
Drip 2 drops in the ear in the morning and evening.
You can use the solution as a turunda.
The treatment course should not last longer than 5 days.

If a woman has otitis media, she can also use remedies such as Otipax. This medication has a similar effect. It contains a non-toxic drug phenazol. Also, the medicine contains lidocaine, which effectively anesthetizes the inflamed auditory organ. Do not refuse vodka compresses. Vodka in the ear with otitis media can be used as bandages, which should be kept for no longer than 15 minutes. The liquid has a warming and antimicrobial effect. "Cursed" is widely used in the treatment of various inflammatory processes.

Boric acid and boric alcohol what is the difference

These funds are different types of the same active ingredient, boric acid, which is used as an antiseptic.

Differences between a weak acid and ethanol.

Acid is sold in the form of a powder, alcohol solution or balm, for external use. It has a white color, it is used for the preparation of various liquids. Acid is relevant in the treatment of wounds, rinsing the mouth.
Boric alcohol is a ready-to-use solution for treating painful areas of the skin in order to relieve pain in otitis media.

If you need to eliminate pain and itching in the ear with otitis, it is better to buy weak alcohol. It is more convenient to use.

How to prepare a solution of boric acid

A weak acid solution can be prepared at home or purchased at a pharmacy. When making the drug yourself, you need to clearly observe the proportions, you can not exaggerate or reduce them.

To make a solution, you should take 1 dessert spoon of boric acid, dissolve in a glass (200 ml) of boiled water.
Mix and consume immediately. You will get a 3% solution.

It should be noted that a weak acid has no shelf life. It should be kept in a dark place, away from children. It is better to use a self-prepared solution immediately to get the maximum antiseptic and analgesic effect.

Contraindications to the use of the drug

Boric alcohol, like any other medicinal drug, has a number of contraindications. The list may expand, depending on the state of health of the patient.

If the product is not warmed up before use, the pain will increase.
If the tympanic membrane is perforated, or there is a suspicion of this, the use of fluid is prohibited.
If the solution gets on the mucous membrane, abrasion, injured skin, it accumulates in the organs, exhibiting toxic effects.

Alcohol 5% will not work as it is too toxic. You also need to keep drops or turundas in your ears for no longer than 15 minutes.

Possible side effects

Boric acid or alcohol can have some side effects. They can be avoided if the solution is used correctly.

Possible side effects when using weak alcohol or acid:

convulsions;
vomit;
malfunctions of the kidneys;
pain in the head.

If a person has problems with the kidneys, you can not use this remedy. If side symptoms appear, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Conclusion

It is worth using a weak acid or alcohol for earaches regularly to achieve the desired effect. With severe pain, doctors recommend inserting turundas into the ear at night. In the morning, take out the flagella, drip the organ of hearing with pharmaceutical drops, insert into the ear canal.

Ear pain is a real test for both adults and children. Against the background of this condition, there is a decrease in working capacity, sleep is disturbed, and the general well-being of the patient worsens. Quite often, boric alcohol is used to get rid of earache. Use this medicine should be in compliance with a number of rules, otherwise you can cause serious harm to your health. Despite the fact that boric alcohol has been successfully used for a long time, today doctors have begun to consider it a not so effective drug for ear pain, and it is beginning to give way to more modern medicines.

What is the difference between boric acid and boric alcohol

Boric acid is a crystalline substance that is colorless and odorless and exhibits a slight acidic property. Its solution in ethyl alcohol with a strength of 70 degrees is boric alcohol. Today, you can buy boric alcohol in a pharmacy with a concentration of 0.5%, 1%, 2%, and even very strong -5%. In the treatment of the ear, the drug with a concentration of 2% is most often used.

Indications for the use of boric alcohol for ear pain

Boric alcohol can be used to treat earache for many diseases. This drug helps out when diagnosed:

otitis externa;
otitis media up to the moment of perforation of the tympanic membrane;
congestion and pain in the ear due to severe hypothermia;
ear pain due to a cold;
ear pain due to a viral infection;
furuncle in the ear canal;
ear trauma.

If there are indications for use, alcohol is used for instillation or introduction into the ear of cotton turundas soaked in it. Sometimes compresses are also made with this drug to warm the diseased ear.

Contraindications for the use of boric alcohol

Boric alcohol can not be used to treat a sore ear for everyone. There are a number of contraindications, which must not be violated. Any neglect of the ban on treatment with this drug can lead to serious consequences, which will have to be eliminated with medical help. It is necessary to refuse treatment with boric alcohol when there are the following contraindications:

pregnancy period at any time;
breastfeeding period;
children's age up to 3 years;
perforation of the eardrum;
discharge of pus from the ear;
discharge of ichor from the ear;
disorders in the work of the kidneys;
disturbances in the work of the heart;
allergic reaction to the drug.

In addition, it should also be taken into account that it is unacceptable to use boric alcohol for more than 10 days.

Boric alcohol side effects

In some patients, the drug may cause a number of side effects. If they occur, you must immediately stop using this medication and consult your doctor. Side effects from the use of boric alcohol include:

headache of varying intensity;
oliguria;
rashes on the skin in the ear area;
confusion;
convulsions;
nausea;
vomit;
malfunctions of the kidneys;
shock state.

In the vast majority of cases, patients tolerate boric alcohol well, and side effects occur only with a significant overdose of the drug.

General rules for ear instillation with boric alcohol

The rules of treatment are common for children and adults. It is their violations that usually lead to unpleasant consequences from the use of boric alcohol. It is very important not to forget that this remedy can only be prescribed by a doctor. You should not make a decision on the use of boric alcohol on your own.

In order for the treatment to bring the maximum effect, the ear should be cleaned of earwax with a cotton swab before instillation.

It is possible to bury in a sore ear only a composition heated to body temperature. If the alcohol is too cold or hot, then when it enters the ear canal, only an increase in pain will occur. It is better to warm the medicine with warm water. If you heat the drug on fire, alcohol can easily overheat and even flare up.

From 1 to 5 drops of the drug are injected into the ear for one instillation, depending on how much is prescribed by the doctor. The procedure is carried out in the supine position. As soon as the medicine has leaked, the ear hole is closed with a piece of cotton wool and left to lie for at least 20 minutes. If this is not done, then boric alcohol will flow out of the ear too early and will not have the proper therapeutic effect. The number of instillations per day is determined by the doctor for each patient individually.

It is necessary to bury the drug in both ears, even if one is affected by the disease. It is impossible to inject the medicine into both ears at the same time, otherwise it will leak out of one. I treat the second ear 20 minutes after the injection of the drug into the first.

In the event that there is not enough time for instillation, cotton turundas soaked in the preparation should be used, which are injected into the ear.

If there is no improvement after 3-5 days of treatment or the patient's condition continues to worsen, then you should immediately seek medical help.

Features of the treatment of a sick ear with boric alcohol in a child

Boric alcohol can be used for children over the age of 3 years only after consultation with an ENT doctor. The medicine is administered in a heated state, 1 drop in each ear. After waiting 15 minutes after instillation, you need to carefully insert a cotton flagellum into the ear canal, which will absorb excess alcohol. This is required in order to prevent its exposure to tissues for too long, which may cause irritation.

Instillations to the child are carried out 1 time in 12 hours, unless otherwise recommended by the doctor. The duration of treatment should not exceed 7 days.

Boric alcohol should be used to treat a sore ear with extreme caution due to the presence of contraindications and side effects. For any unpleasant sensation arising from the use of the drug, you should stop instillation and choose another remedy on the recommendation of a doctor.

Most often, otitis media develops in children, but it can also occur in adults when the immune system is weakened or the infection is reactivated.

How are otitis media treated?

Most often, otitis is caused by pneumococci or staphylococci, hemophilic infection or some other microbes that can be active in the mucous membranes of the nose and pharynx and penetrate into the ear in an ascending way.

Contribute to the reflux of microbes into the ear cavity by improper blowing of the nose, excessively active nasal rinsing and sniffing.

In the treatment of ear diseases, boric alcohol is often used, more precisely, an alcohol 3% solution of boric acid. This tool belongs to the category of obsolete, today there are modern drugs that have a more complex and pronounced effect.

But still, many use boric alcohol to treat otitis media, as they consider it an inexpensive, affordable and effective remedy. Sometimes ENT doctors also prescribe it for the complex treatment of otitis media. But it is worth remembering that boric alcohol can be instilled into the ears only with firm confidence that there is no perforation of the eardrum (there is no discharge of pus or ichor from the ears).

Boric alcohol for the treatment of otitis media: method of application

There are two main ways to use boric alcohol for ear treatment - it is direct instillation of heated boric alcohol with a pipette into the ear or using boric alcohol on ear turundas inserted into the ear. Each method must be used correctly so as not to cause complications.

When instilling boric alcohol into the ear, it is necessary to warm the drops to body temperature in a water bath - instillation of cold drops into the ear leads to a sharp increase in pain.

Boric alcohol for adults is instilled three drops into each ear canal at least three to four times a day. Instillation is done in the supine position, the earlobe is slightly pulled back and down to straighten the ear canal. Drops are instilled with a pipette with a rounded end and remain in such a position that the drops can reach the bottom of the ear canal.

Attention: if you suspect a perforation of the eardrum, it is forbidden to instill any drops, including boric alcohol!

The use of ear turundas with boric alcohol is safer, especially if perforation is suspected. To treat otitis in a similar way, it is necessary to twist a thin wick or turunda out of cotton wool, apply a few drops of boric alcohol to it for soaking, and gently insert it into the ear canal with twisting movements. This procedure is best done before bedtime, leaving the turundas in the ear all night.

Before using turundas or drops, it is necessary to carefully but thoroughly clean the ear canal from the remnants of earwax. For this purpose, you can apply 3% hydrogen peroxide by dropping 5-8 drops of the solution into the ear canal, and then tilt your head so that the solution with softened sulfur comes out. Residues of peroxide and sulfur can be blotted with a cotton swab.

The duration of treatment is no more than 3-5 days, in the absence of improvement or if the condition worsens, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Contraindications and side effects

Treatment with boric alcohol is contraindicated during pregnancy and lactation, with impaired functioning of the kidneys and liver, with individual intolerance or hypersensitivity to the drug, as well as in children under three years of age.
Treatment with boric alcohol can lead to the development of a number of extremely unpleasant complications due to the toxic effect of boric acid on the body. This will be especially pronounced with prolonged therapy of otitis media, which lasts more than 10 days.
Manifestations of side effects in the treatment of otitis media are nausea and dizziness, convulsions and clouding of consciousness, disruption of the kidneys or liver, intoxication of the body.

If any disturbing symptoms appear during treatment with boric alcohol, it is necessary to immediately stop treatment and contact an ENT doctor.

Boric alcohol is a liquid consisting of 70% ethyl alcohol and boric acid dissolved in it, and the solution comes in various concentrations. To relieve the inflammatory process in the ears, a 3% composition is usually used.

The action of boric alcohol is that it creates a warming effect and destroys the infection, which is usually the cause of otitis media. But, before you start treatment with this remedy, you need to know exactly what ear pain is associated with otitis media, and also at what stage the disease is. In no case should boric alcohol be used if there is damage to the eardrum or if there is discharge from the ears in the form of pus.

To avoid various negative consequences, you must first consult with a specialist. After the examination, he will determine what caused the disease and whether it is possible in this particular case to drip boric alcohol into the ear. Instructions for using this tool is also important, because it is quite toxic and, if used improperly, can cause negative consequences, accumulating in body tissues. For the same reason, dripping boric alcohol into the ear of a child under 3 years old is contraindicated. After all, the kidneys are responsible for removing toxins from the body, and in young children they are not yet sufficiently formed for this.

Before starting treatment with boric alcohol, it is necessary to thoroughly clean the ear canals from sulfur accumulated in them in order to increase the effectiveness of therapy. A well-established remedy for dissolving ear plugs is 3% hydrogen peroxide.

Warm up the hydrogen peroxide to body temperature.
Drip 5-6 drops of the drug in each ear.
Wait about 5 minutes in the supine position.
Tilt your head and let the peroxide flow out.
With cotton swabs moistened with warm water, clean the ear canals from sulfur residues.

Before use, boric alcohol must also be heated in a water bath to approximately body temperature. During the inflammatory process in the ears, or if the ear is blown out, they should not be instilled with cold drops - this can aggravate the disease and increase pain.

There are the following methods of using boric alcohol.

A few drops (at least 3) of the heated substance are instilled into the ear with a pipette. At this time, the patient should lie on his side and remain after instillation in this position for several minutes so that the drops can penetrate the ear canal. The second ear is treated in the same way. It should be carried out 2-4 times a day for 7-10 days.
Thin flagella made of cotton wool or cotton (gauze) swabs are moistened with boric alcohol and placed in the ear canals, best of all for the whole night. This method of treatment is considered safer. It also needs to be carried out for 7-10 days.

A good result is the alternation of these two methods, as well as their combination with additional heating of the ears (for example, using warm salt). If as a result of several procedures the pain disappeared, do not stop treatment. After all, if the infection is not destroyed, the disease will soon return. But at the same time, if after 7-10 days there is no improvement in the condition, then you should not continue treatment with boric alcohol. It is necessary to consult a doctor and change the way you fight the infection.

Representatives of the younger generation are much more prone to otitis media than adults. This is due to the structural features of the children's auricle and nasal cavity: the infection gets into them and spreads much more easily. Children over 3 years old are prescribed this medicine also in the form of instillation. The dosage for this category of patients is slightly less and is 2-4 drops. And for instillation, be sure to use a glass pipette rounded at the end. Another "childish" way is to lay moistened flagella or tampons. The second method is considered more preferable, since the alcohol does not go directly to the eardrum. It is necessary to treat children with this remedy only after the diagnosis and prescription of a doctor.

It must be understood that boric alcohol will not eliminate the root cause of otitis media, but will only destroy the infection located directly in the ear and warm it up. If otitis is a consequence of a cold that has arisen, then before starting treatment for the ears, it is necessary to get rid of the infection in the sinuses and throat, because these organs are directly related to them. While an inflammatory process develops in neighboring organs, the infection will spread to the ear canals all the time, provoking the development of otitis media.

Contraindications

The period of pregnancy and lactation.
Age up to 3 years.
Use of the drug for more than 10 days.
Individual intolerance.
Diseases of the kidneys and liver.

If the drug is not suitable for a particular person or is used for too long, this may be expressed in the following symptoms:

nausea;
headache;
diarrhea;
dizziness;
convulsions.

In the case of such manifestations, it is necessary to immediately stop the use of boric alcohol.

Boric alcohol is dripped into the ear only as a disinfectant and cannot replace the full treatment of otitis media. Therefore, even if it has a positive effect and relieves pain, it must be combined with other methods of restoring health. In order to prevent the development or recurrence of the disease, complex treatment is necessary, including the elimination of infection throughout the body, as well as strengthening the immune system.

Ear pain is most often a symptom of otitis media, a disease that is an inflammatory process in the ear. The most common type of this disease is inflammation of the middle ear, which most often occurs as a complication of ENT infections. Due to the anatomical features, children are more susceptible to this disease, but otitis media is often found in adults.

The causative agents of otitis are most often staphylococci, pneumococci, Haemophilus influenzae and other pathogenic bacteria that are active in inflammation of the nasal mucosa. Bacteria can enter the middle ear through the auditory tube when coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose.

The use of boric alcohol for the ear

In the treatment of ear diseases, solutions of antiseptics applied topically (buried into the ear canal) are prescribed as part of complex therapy. One of such means in the treatment of the ear is boric alcohol - an alcohol solution of boric acid (3%). It is worth noting that this drug is considered obsolete today, and today more modern drugs that are more active are more often prescribed. However, boric alcohol for the ears continues to be used to this day as an affordable and fairly effective remedy, and it is often prescribed by otolaryngologists. Consider the features of the use of boric alcohol for the ears.

How to treat the ear with boric alcohol?

There are two ways to use boric alcohol: instillation into the ear and using it to impregnate ear turundas. Let's take a closer look at these methods:

Instillation with boric alcohol. As a rule, for the treatment of otitis media in adults, it is recommended to instill 3 drops of boric alcohol into each ear canal 3 to 4 times a day. Before the procedure, an alcoholic solution of boric acid should be slightly heated (for example, in a spoon over a fire) to a comfortable temperature. It is necessary to bury the ears in the supine position.
Ear turundas with boric alcohol. For treatment, it is necessary to make small flagella (turundas) from gauze or cotton wool and, after soaking them with boric alcohol, insert them into the ear canal. It is best to carry out the procedure before going to bed, leaving the turundas for the whole night.

Before using boric alcohol, it is recommended to thoroughly clean the ears of accumulated sulfur, which will contribute to better penetration of the therapeutic agent. Hydrogen peroxide (3%) can be used to clean the ears. The procedure is carried out as follows: 5-10 drops of hydrogen peroxide are instilled into the ear, after which, tilting the head in the opposite direction, the ear is thoroughly cleaned with a cotton swab. The same is repeated with the other ear.

Treatment of ears with boric alcohol is carried out within a week. You should not stop treatment earlier, barely feeling signs of improvement. If after a week the symptoms of the disease have not disappeared, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Side effects when treating ears with boric alcohol

Due to the toxic effect of boric alcohol, the treatment of ear diseases with this remedy should last no more than 10 days. Side effects of boric alcohol are:

If the above symptoms appear, you should immediately stop using boric alcohol and seek medical help.

Boric alcohol - contraindications