PMC10302614_01
(a) Picture showing hair growth and wax in tympanic membrane with excoriation of floor of external auditory canal (1 = hair, 2 = wax, 3 = excoriated EAC). (b) Evidence of cotton bud abuse by the presence of 1 = hair follicles, 2 = cotton wool, 3 = excoriation of ear canal.
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TM along with the wax that are normally not present in the medial part of EAC let alone the TM (Figure 1). The brushing of the hair in the TM was the cause of distressing symptoms of scratchy sensation.
Pure tone audiogram showing the normal hearing level in this patient.
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Pure tone Audiometry and impedance showed normal hearing level and normal middle ear functioning (Figure 2).
Follow-up of the patient after 1 year. The otitis externa has resolved but hair follicles are still present in the bony meatus and tympanic membrane marked by number 1.
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Follow-up after a year showed that the otitis externa had resolved but hair was still present in TM suggesting persistence of distorted epithelial migration (Figure 3).