Did my ENT doctor screwed my ear? (cauliflower ear)

[Corso10tx]

I got my first cauliflower after training for 6 months and it does not look bad at all. I was considering to drain it myself with a syringe. Since I am a customer facing representative, I decided to pay the co-pay and see a specialist to "save" my ear. Instead of the usual syringe draining, the specialist made an incision to drain it.

Five days later, the fluid refilled and I had to drain it again. This time, I think he made it worse as he opened the incision and drain it again. The incision is now no longer small.

Now my ear swole up and I basically hate the doctor for making that incision. I personally feel that he has no experience specific to this. Anyway, based on the cut, how soon can I go back to training? It has been more than a week since I last trained.

 

[Zankou]

ER doctors are *retarded* when it comes to cauli. They have no experience dealing with it. I had an ER doctor do the same thing. Fills right back up, and now you have an incision. Eventually, after I kept repeatedly draining through the incision ... a super gross process ... it stuck back down.

Needles are the way to go for draining cauli.

 

[Ice 9 Cobra]

You'll need to apply pressure to it, to keep it from filling up. I have seen doctors sew these on, but you can use rare earth magnets, a clothes pin, etc. It will just hurt like a bitch because it is so sensitive.

I also wouldn't worry about cauli and front of house employment. Most people dont notice it and those who do are usually fascinated.

Also if anyone is reading this, I guarantee going to your coach is better than going to the ER or an ENT. They might not be a doctor, but damn sure they have drained hundreds of ears in their day.

 

[TeamKenpo]

Yikes dude. Never seen a cauli drained that way. Looks like you might have to wait till it fully heals to get back on the mats.

My wife has treated mine with a syringe a few times. She’s a veterinary nurse so she got a hold of a thick gauge needle and it drained nice and quick. My left ear is a little lumpy but it pretty much looks normal unless you look really closely.

 

[Corso10tx]

Although the incision is more or less dry I am stuck with an incision that is wide open. My cauliflower wasn't even bad at the beginning...oh well. Anyway, syringe draining is the WAY until it dries up IMO. I guess I get to live to learn and tell.

 

[jpak]

An ENT drained mine with a syringe, where you got it, it looks like it'll be tough to compress, maybe that's why they did it that way

 

[mattemate]

You shouldn't Spar for a good while, I would say at least until the scab is gone.
Spend the next couple of weeks just drilling heel Hooks and leg entanglement positions
And when your ears start to hurt worse some headgear
Just wear the stupid headgear as soon as you're stupid ear starts to hurt and you'll never be in this situation in the first place

 

[mattemate]

I have a video on my Facebook where I drain my own cauliflower and you pretty much see how to do it.
But I can't download the video to put it on YouTube
Just do it yourself

 

[Darwinambrosius]

Before mine got so bad they were beyond repair, I drained them myself with a syringe and put magnets on afterwards. I've never heard of good things coming from seeking professional care for cauliflower ear.

 

[Zankou]

Before mine got so bad they were beyond repair, I drained them myself with a syringe and put magnets on afterwards. I've never heard of good things coming from seeking professional care for cauliflower ear.

I think it may be the one issue in grappling where ‘go see a doctor’ is actually the wrong advice. 99 times out of 100 it’s the right advice, but for some reason they don’t seem to teach effective cauli treatment in med school.

 

[beastlightnbs]

My girlfriend is a nurse so I have syringes for my ears and that's the only way I've ever drained them. It's nowhere near as bad as it sounds to do yourself. Just don't get a big gauge needle, make sure you sterilize the ear with alcohol and don't use the needle too many times. She tells me to use a different one every time, but she also tells me to wear my headgear and cup every day too. One of these days I'll learn and listen to her.

 

[Dirty Holt]

General practitioners have no idea. I had a kid this year get a decent size cauliflower and the urgent care doc gave him antibiotics, told him it was just an infection. Kid told him exactly what it was and the doc said no way. He found his way to a syringe and got it out.

What your ENT did, is called lancing. IMO, its way better than a syringe because you get it all out. Ive seen a hundred ears or more get lanced, and they always put on a cast afterwards. I have seen flea testicles bigger than TS cauliflower ear. Ice would have gotten rid of it in two days. Lancing for something that tiny, you gotta think they are out for the money. Lancing that little thing is absurd.

 

[Corso10tx]

I think you are spot on. I should have put ice on it. I freaked out and went to the specialist and he immediately went for the knife. The bill was let just say rather expensive.

It is still swelling now. I have craft rare magnets (battery watch size) that I bought from Hobby Lobby. The compression will start to hurt after like 40 mins or so.

General practitioners have no idea. I had a kid this year get a decent size cauliflower and the urgent care doc gave him antibiotics, told him it was just an infection. Kid told him exactly what it was and the doc said no way. He found his way to a syringe and got it out.

What your ENT did, is called lancing. IMO, its way better than a syringe because you get it all out. Ive seen a hundred ears or more get lanced, and they always put on a cast afterwards. I have seen flea testicles bigger than TS cauliflower ear. Ice would have gotten rid of it in two days. Lancing for something that tiny, you gotta think they are out for the money. Lancing that little thing is absurd.

 

[MaxMMA]

MD's are basically retarded when it comes to mat related ailments. Like others have said, your coach or more experienced teammates could do a better job.

Same thing when you get your first "mat rash" chances of a misdiagnosis are unbelieveably high. I can't even tell you how many times I've went to the DR knowing exactly what kind of infection/rash I have and the DR tells me something way off... seeing their face when you return 2 days later and tell them that not only did their meds not work, but that your condition has worsened is priceless.

Now if Im sure im being misdiagnosed I'll try to explain to them my position on why I believe their diagnosis to be incorrect and request they give me the correct treatment. If they brush me off and treat me like a member of the great unwashed ill usually get a second opinion.

 

[LiT_WiCK]

ER doctors are *retarded* when it comes to cauli. They have no experience dealing with it. I had an ER doctor do the same thing. Fills right back up, and now you have an incision. Eventually, after I kept repeatedly draining through the incision ... a super gross process ... it stuck back down.

Needles are the way to go for draining cauli.

know why?

because cauliflower ear isn't an emergency

 

[berimBOWLoh]

going to the hospital for cauliflower ear might not revoke your man card but you could end up on probation

 

[Evenflow80]

My doctor cut it open too but he stitched it up real tight after to prevent it from filling up. He seemed to know what he was doing.

Sadly I'm getting one again right now

 

[Dogstarman]

I got my first cauliflower after training for 6 months and it does not look bad at all. I was considering to drain it myself with a syringe. Since I am a customer facing representative, I decided to pay the co-pay and see a specialist to "save" my ear. Instead of the usual syringe draining, the specialist made an incision to drain it.

Five days later, the fluid refilled and I had to drain it again. This time, I think he made it worse as he opened the incision and drain it again. The incision is now no longer small.

Now my ear swole up and I basically hate the doctor for making that incision. I personally feel that he has no experience specific to this. Anyway, based on the cut, how soon can I go back to training? It has been more than a week since I last trained.

View attachment 379841 View attachment 379843

Lol. You drained that cauliflower ear. Wasn’t even that bad. Now you’re going to have a scar along with cauliflower.

 

[kjg1672]

It sounds like the average ENT would know what to do, but any other kind of doc would most likely be clueless. 11 years of grappling and my ears, somehow, are still good.

 

[MonkeyNuts!]

If an incision is made to drain the ear, a suture should be placed, to not only close the incision but also to bring the layers of cartilage together to prevent recurrence (basically does what compression does).

The only MDs who can reliably diagnose and treat cauliflower are those in sports medicine subspecialty.