Effect of vagus nerve stimulation during ear wash

Abstract

Background Ear wash is the process for removing cerumen from the external auditory canal. Objective To detect the effects of ear wash on pulse, blood pressure, ECG, and saturation percentage of the oxygen in the blood (SPO2) and to know also if it leads to cough, tinnitus, and vertigo. Patients and methods This study was performed on 200 patients divided to two groups: group I included 120 healthy persons and group II included 80 diseased persons. Results In most of the cases, decreased pulse was seen but was within normal limits in the two groups. In group I, most of the cases had decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressures but still within normal, whereas in group II, most of the cases had increased systolic and diastolic blood pressures but within normal limits. Most of the cases had no changes in ECG in the two groups. Most of the cases had decreased SPO2 but within normal limits in the two groups. We found positive ear cough reflex, tinnitus, and vertigo in some cases during the ear wash in the two groups. Conclusion The results of the study showed that the majority of the changes that happened during the ear wash in the pulse, the blood pressure, ECG, and SPO2 in the both groups were within normal range, and we found that the ear wash can lead to cough, tinnitus, and vertigo. These changes were caused by stimulation of the auricular branch of the vagus nerve that supplies the external auditory canal.