平時沒事喜歡用棉簽掏耳朵？這其實是一種錯誤的習(xí)慣，因為用棉簽清潔耳朵可能會導(dǎo)致更嚴重的后果，比如顱內(nèi)感染。

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.

據(jù)報道，一名習(xí)慣每天用棉簽清潔耳朵的女性發(fā)生顱內(nèi)感染，導(dǎo)致生命受到威脅。

cotton swab：棉簽

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! 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.

澳大利亞的《這就是生活！》雜志報道稱，這位名為茉莉的37歲女性說，她每天晚上用棉簽清潔耳朵。久而久之，她注意到左耳聽力出現(xiàn)問題，最后去看了醫(yī)生。一開始，醫(yī)生說她有耳部感染并給她開了抗生素。

antibiotics [,?nt?ba?'?t?ks]：n.抗生素

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

但她的聽力問題依然存在。不久后她發(fā)現(xiàn)，清潔耳朵后，棉簽上出現(xiàn)血跡。

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.

由于聽力測試顯示她有中度耳聾，茉莉被轉(zhuǎn)給一位耳鼻喉專家，這位專家給她做了CT掃描，結(jié)果很糟糕：她受到細菌感染，并且感染正在“侵蝕”她耳后的顱骨。

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

據(jù)報道，這位專家告訴她：“你四五年前就該來找我看病，你早該做手術(shù)了?！?/p>

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.

為了把受感染的組織摘除并重建耳道，茉莉接受了5小時的手術(shù)。外科醫(yī)生告訴她，棉纖維卡在了她已經(jīng)受到感染的耳朵里。

ear canal：耳道，耳孔

"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.

茉莉說：“在長達5年的時間里，棉纖維不斷聚集并潰爛。我耳后的顱骨已經(jīng)變得像紙一樣薄。”

fester ['fest?]：vi.潰爛；化膿

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.

商業(yè)內(nèi)幕網(wǎng)站報道稱，棉簽可以安全地清潔耳朵是一種誤解。事實并非如此。實際上，棉簽的包裝袋上寫著：“別用棉簽掏耳朵?！?/p>

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. 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.

美國耳鼻咽喉頭頸外科學(xué)會說，一般而言，“應(yīng)該避免把一些東西弄到耳朵里”，包括棉簽。用棉簽清潔耳朵實際上可能事與愿違，并把耳垢推回到耳朵里。此外，棉簽和其他工具可能對耳朵造成刺激、甚至損傷，例如耳膜穿孔或耳部感染。

counterproductive [,ka?nt?pr?'d?kt?v]：adj.使達不到預(yù)期目標的

earwax ['??w?ks]：n.耳垢；耳屎

eardrum ['??dr?m]：n.鼓膜，耳膜；中耳

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，英格蘭的醫(yī)生報告了一名男子的病例，棉簽的棉花頭卡在了他的耳道里，之后患者出現(xiàn)頭骨感染。

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."

手術(shù)治好了茉莉的感染，但她的聽力損失卻不可逆轉(zhuǎn)。她說：“現(xiàn)在，我想要警告所有人注意誤用棉簽的危險。我們的耳朵非常脆弱敏感，需要小心護理。”

來源：趣味科學(xué)網(wǎng)站、參考消息網(wǎng)

編輯：yaning