还在用棉签掏耳朵？不要命啦?！ Cotton swabs are not safe for cleaning ears

A woman's daily habit of cleaning her ears with cotton swabs led to a life-threatening infection in her skull, according to news reports.

据报道，一名习惯每天用棉签清洁耳朵的女性发生颅内感染，导致生命受到威胁。

The 37-year-old woman, who is identified only as Jasmine, said she cleaned her ears every night with cotton swabs, according to the Australian magazine That's Life! 

澳大利亚的《这就是生活！》杂志报道称，这位名为茉莉的37岁女性说，她每天晚上用棉签清洁耳朵。

But over time, she noticed she had trouble hearing out of her left ear, and finally went to the doctor. She was initially told she had an ear infection, and was given antibiotics.

久而久之，她注意到左耳听力出现问题，最后去看了医生。一开始，医生说她有耳部感染并给她开了抗生素。

But her hearing problems remained, and she soon noticed blood appearing on the cotton swabs after she cleaned her ears.

但她的听力问题依然存在。不久后她发现，清洁耳朵后，棉签上出现血迹。

After a hearing test showed she had moderate deafness, she was referred to an ear, nose and throat specialist. The specialist ordered a CT scan, which showed a horrifying condition: Jasmine had a bacterial infection that was "eating away" at her skull bone behind her ear.

由于听力测试显示她有中度耳聋，茉莉被转给一位耳鼻喉专家，这位专家给她做了CT扫描，结果很糟糕：她受到细菌感染，并且感染正在“侵蚀”她耳后的颅骨。

"You should have come to see me four or five years ago," the specialist reportedly told Jasmine. "You need surgery yesterday."

据报道，这位专家告诉她：“你四五年前就该来找我看病，你早该做手术了。”

Jasmine eventually underwent a 5-hour surgery to remove the infected tissue and reconstruct her ear canal. The surgeons told her that she had cotton fibers lodged in her ear, which had become infected.

为了把受感染的组织摘除并重建耳道，茉莉接受了5小时的手术。外科医生告诉她，棉纤维卡在了她已经受到感染的耳朵里。

"The cotton had been collecting and festering for as long as five years, and my skull bone behind the ear was paper-thin," Jasmine said.

茉莉说：“在长达5年的时间里，棉纤维不断聚集并溃烂。我耳后的颅骨已经变得像纸一样薄。”

It's a misperception that cotton swabs are safe for cleaning ears. They are not. Indeed, the packaging for Q-tips even states, "Do not insert swab into ear canal," according to Business Insider.

商业内幕网站报道称，棉签可以安全地清洁耳朵是一种误解。事实并非如此。实际上，棉签的包装袋上写着：“别用棉签掏耳朵。”

The American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNSF) says that, in general, "you should avoid putting things in your ears", including cotton swabs. 

美国耳鼻咽喉头颈外科学会说，一般而言，“应该避免把一些东西弄到耳朵里”，包括棉签。

Using a swab to clean the ear can actually be counterproductive and push earwax back into the ear. What's more, cotton swabs or other tools may cause irritation or even injury to the ear, such as a punctured eardrum or ear infection, according to AAO-HNSF.

用棉签清洁耳朵实际上可能事与愿违，并把耳垢推回到耳朵里。此外，棉签和其他工具可能对耳朵造成刺激、甚至损伤，例如耳膜穿孔或耳部感染。

In March of this year, doctors in England reported the case of a man who also developed an infection in his skull after a cotton swab tip got stuck in his ear canal.

今年3月，英格兰的医生报告了一名男子的病例，棉签的棉花头卡在了他的耳道里，之后患者出现头骨感染。

Jasmine's surgery was able to treat her infection, but she was left with permanent hearing loss. "I now try to warn everyone of the dangers of misusing cotton buds," she said. "Our ears are such delicate and sensitive parts of our body and need to be treated with care."

手术治好了茉莉的感染，但她的听力损失却不可逆转。她说：“现在，我想要警告所有人注意误用棉签的危险。我们的耳朵非常脆弱敏感，需要小心护理。”