Ear dermatitis before and after:

One of our customers recently asked us a question about eczema in the ears when wearing hearing aids. The eczema started AFTER starting the use of the hearing aids.

In this case, we think of a form of eczema called allergic contact dermatitis–a fancy name for eczema that is caused by an allergy to one or more chemicals that are coming in contact with the skin of the outer ear or the ear canals. This often causes a red, scaly and itchy rash that can drive you nuts!

If you wear hearing aids AND you’ve developed an itchy rash in your  ears, think of allergic contact dermatitis. The chemicals that cause allergic contact dermatitis from hearing aids are usually several different acrylics (polyethylene glycol dimethacrylate and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) that are used in the hearing aid shell material. The solution? Be sure to change out the hearing aids to some that are made from a different material. The acrylic material is usually a hard, shiny plastic. We recommend using the TrueCider Serum followed by the Eczema Experts 1% Hydrocortisone two to three times a day to get the rash to clear up in conjunction with changing out your hearing aids to ones that are made of a different material—a good alternative is a silicone hearing aid–in this case, the hearing aid is made from a different chemical so usually no allergy develops and your eczema can heal! Yay!

Allergic contact dermatitis from acrylates found in hearing aids can look like this: