OK, when my son was first born we noticed a small hole near his ear. It is about the size of an ear piercing hole and located just in front of his ear hole. We had no idea what the heck it was and asked several doctors and nurses, nobody knew. After he was a few months old there was what looked like a plug type blackhead thing kind of sticking out the top of it, only it was white. I could not resist squeezing it. A coily little white thing squirted out of it. I figured it was some kind of enlarged pore or something. As time has passed the little white coily thing became a dark gold large coily thing that would build up quickly every 2 weeks or so. I kept thinking if I didn't squeeze it, it would turn into a big cyst or something. My husband and I kept saying we should take him to the dermatologist to get to the bottom of it, but never did. Every time I take him to the pediatrician I forgot to ask.
The other day I was talking to my sister on the phone. She is in nursing school which is very interesting for the rest of us. Lots of questions that we have had about the body, health, death, birth, etc. she suddenly knows many answers to (but not this one). So, I was mentioning to her about the little pore. I was up at night by myself and sitting in front of the computer and Googled it as I was on the phone with her. Wham, it came up right away. It's called an ear pit or preauricular pit. They are completely harmless. It's basically just an enlarged pore. Sometimes as the child grows it just stretches out and is hardly visible (maybe resembling a vague chicken pox scar). Some adults still have them years later. Then I read that it is genetic.
Here is the definition from Medterms.com:
Ear pit: Tiny pit in front of the ear: preauricular pit. A minor anomaly of no great consequence in itself. More common in blacks than whites and in females than males. Can recur in families. The presence of 2 or more minor anomalies in a child increases the probability that the child has a major malformation.
Well, this bit of information made a little sense to me. My son is not black nor a female for that matter. My husband had another anomaly near his ear as an infant. It was not a pit though, it was a preauricular tag shaped like a pea in almost the same spot but on the opposite ear. The doctor tied a string around it when he was a baby and it eventually fell off weeks later. You can still see where it was. Apparently the preauricular pit and tag are closely related as far as ear anomalies go.
My only question is to squeeze or not to squeeze? I will ask when we go for his 1 year immunizations this Wednesday. Hope that this did not gross anyone out. I am always fascinated to learn about things that weren't in health books, stuff you typically don't hear/read about. Have any unusual anomalies or health/body oddities that you always wanted to get to the bottom of and haven't? *This photo is not my sons ear but his "pit" looks just like it.
53 comments:
Very intriguing. The squeezing doesn't bother him?
I have really odd pinky toenails that feel like they are the wrong side up, if that makes any sense at all. We always called them hamburger toes. Don't know why. Oh. And I have a cyst in my right earlobe. I've had it since I was an infant. The doc said that if it didn't absorb on its own by the time I was eight, I'd probably have it forever. It's still there. And for the record, I'd totally squeeze it.
I think more than anything it bothers him that I hold his head still, babies hate to be restrained in any way. I don't have to squeeze very hard though, because the pore is so large unlike a normal pimple/blackhead.
My Great Aunt has this, but I never bothered to ask her about it. Very interesting.
Your post was very informational; my husband i tried finding information on this because he has a hole under his arm pit. It smells awful when I squeeze it. I told him I've seen it before near the ear on my ex and it had the same awful smell when I squeezed it.
Hey anonymous,
The Dr. told me not to squeeze but to press on it with a warm compress to try to get stuff out. He will not let me hold a warm compress/washcloth on it but I hardly have to push next to it with one finger and it empties. And boy does it stink. The older he gets the worse it stinks. The less I squeeze it the more it oozes gold stuff. Sorry for the grossness but I thought this also may help you. Good luck!
My 14 month old daughter has an ear pit aswell and we never though more of it until today( I also have been very attempted to have a little squeeze as it does look like blocked pore - white stuff comes out by pressing the side but it doesn't smell though)
Today I noticed that the pit is a little bit swallen and looks infected - (but it doesn't seem to affect my dear daughter) and that is how I found this site as I googled "hole in the ear"
I will pop at our Doc's tomorrow to find out what they say.
My son has the same thing. The doctors noticed it when he was born and told us to watch out for it. They said if it oozes puss then to let them know. Well I pressed on it and it began to oozed the same stuff as you described. So I took him to the doctor. They prescribed some medicine for him and stated that the oozing will stop in a day or two. However, they did schedule for my son to have a CT. Which is tomorrow. The medicine did stop the oozing. But I will find out more after the scan.
Ooh, a CT, is that to further investigate the ear pit? You'll have to let me know what happens. None of his doctors had any alarm or shock about his ear pit they all kinda shrugged it off. It did get oozy 1 time and I left it alone and it took care of itself. It really smelled and looked horrible. I barely had to press near it lightly with one finger and all this greenish yellow stuff poured out . . . . several times a day. That was over a months ago. Now it's all dried up. YUCK!
I have pits on both of my ears. They are genetic. My mother has them, several of her siblings have them, and both of my children have them. Mine have always leaked that strange fluid. I do squeeze them, not knowing what else to do, because if I don't and the fluid builds up, they feel really itchy (I have no idea why) and they crust over. Very interesting about the medicine that helps. I'll have to look into that.
Hi,
Our GP is the same - she is not concerned at all about the pit, even when it got very infected. My daughter has now finished three weeks course of antibiotics and her ear looks almost normal. (Weird thing is, she didn't seem to be in pain with it, even when it was very swollen and clearly badly infected.)
I have asked our doctor to refer us to ear and nose specialist (to find out more about the ear pits) but she just ignores my request and keeps telling me that we should wait and see if it get infected again.
My daughters ear pit doesn't ooze pus but if you press underneath the pit - some comes out (white pus but it doesn't smell )
I have decided to leave the pit alone and decided not to press the pus out. I think in a way the pus is keeping the pit clean as it work as a "top" and stops germs getting into to the pit.
Well - who knows if this works ... (I am not a doctor - just trying to apply some common sense) I just hope my daughter’s ear pit doesn't get infected again.
Hi,
my dh and 7 week old ds have ear pits. Dh has them on both ears and ds has it on the right ear. It runs in his family. We have two other kids they don't have them.
So I knew to look out for them. I noticed it the next morning he was born at night. Well the last few days I noticed that it looked like it was plugged so yesterday I pushed by the hole a a bunch of the white stuff came out!!! No smell. I'm just worried about it affecting his hearing. Did they say anything about hearing loss?
danielle
Thank you so much for the information. I was born with one on each ear but they never bothered me. When my son was born i noticed he had one on his left ear but it started draining the same stuff as others describe now that he's 5 years old. I never knew what it was or what to do about it because I didn't have a name for it. Now I know that it proabably needs to be removed with surgery since it keeps getting infected. Thank you so much for the info again.
Hello all,
I too know that these things run genetically as it has come down my husband's line. His grandfather had one on each ear, both his children (hubby's Mum and her sister) had one on each ear. My husband was the only one of 5 grandchildren to get it and it is on his left ear. Both our sons have one on the left ear too. None of their cousins have it. We call it Grandpa's gill.
Hubby and his Mum never had any issues. Grandpa and the other daughter suffered from repeat infections and itchiness.
Today for the first time my 4 1/2 year old son had a golden yellow discharge (smelly) oozing from it. So that lead me to go hunting on Google for some answers and I came to this set of posts.
Thanks to everyone who has added information because it certainly is not very easy to find. To the person that had the antibiotics ... what was the type prescribed? I will have to book and appointment with the doctor and see what she says next week. My son says that it is not bothering him.
My son has an ear pit on his left ear. I first noticed it when it got infected and took him to Urgent Care thinking he got bit by a spider. They told me to drain it and put him on antibotics. Thinking it was also a spider bit. Since it didn't go away, I took him to a specialist. He is now 3 1/2 years old. Turns out, he has a cycst in his ear. It has to be removed. To relieve the pressure, I was told to sqeeze it and clean it. The surgery is an out patient surgery with a local. Take him to an ear nose and throat doctor.
I also have an ear pit myself. I was told that it is not a problem but to keep it cleaned out. I do this by just giving it a wipe over with a washer in the shower, or making sure it isn't clogged by giving it a scratch every now ad then. Has never caused me any probs (am 27). Has recently started to ooze pus shen squeezed, might get it checked out at the doctors. No pain though.. Don't panic ear pits are not a big deal.. !
i just got my ear pit pierced.. does anyone think that was a bad idea?? it looks awesome tho
I have had an Ear pit since as long as i (and my mother) can remember. I'm 23 now and it has only got infected once, it swelled out and leaked yellow ooze and blood, it was very sore also. Thank god for google as i thought i was the only one who had this.
It also produces a white substance when you apply pressure to it below the hole, a very smelly substance. overall the hole/dent/whatever doesnt bother me but somtimes it will get ichy which usually tells me it needs a 'clear out', although i do think the time it got infected was due to me constantly picking and squeezing it so be aware of that.
Does anyone know how far these holes go? i have never personally dared to poke anything down there.. just in case lol.
I rememebr in my teens someone said it was a alien probe hole, i have been paranoid ever since =p
My doctor said they go in an inch at most.
Hi,
I have both on my left and right ear since i was born (im female, married,31 years)
I have 2 older sisters, one doesn't have and the other only has one on the left ear.
My Mom has both ear.
Squeeze or Not Squeeze....
Although it is not disturbing at all, it become a habit for me to play it.
when i am thinking or in my leisure time, i will play with it and if
i squeeze it, there will be a yellowish liquid come out from the hole.
It is very smelly and it can be swollen if i play it too often (it become infection).
but after apply some antibiotic cream, it will be ok again.
I dont see any problem having this so i never worry and i am ok having it.
cheers,
V-Singapore
i have one on my right year..and my dad has one on both side....so does my grandad and my little cousin alina...my grandad is white..and both me and my dad are half white/half black.
My son was born with these pits on both ears. I've notcied it right away, but never bothered to ask a doctor. Nobody in my family or my husband's family has it. But probably we'll just have to ask more people, I guess. My baby is 3 and half months now, these pits look harmless to me. I clean them ocasionally just by brushing my finger along the skin, because it looks like some dead skin cells accumulating on the surface. Some one posted here that these pits are one inch long - is it the longest size, or just on average? I really don't want them to ooze and I don't want my son to be mocked by his friends.
I am one of 6 grown children- only one brother did not have a "dint"- our family name for it- we inherited this from my dad. Some nephews, a neice and some cousins have them (they call their's gill holes). No problems except my sister who had hers removed in her 30's due to repeat infections. We like to think they're distinctive!
I am 33 years old. I have had this "pit" since as long as I can remember. It doesnt bother me at all. The white stuff that comes out does smell a little though. Every so often I squeeze it out (my wife does this for me every so often too). If I dont, it seems to fill up and leak out on its own at inconvenient times, like when Im using my cell phone. Other than that it seems to remind you when it is full by itchng a little forcing me to scratch or press on it. I am glad to see this is common. If it is a sign of alien probing, at least Im not the only one!
ear pits are very common. I'm 33 and my dad and I both have these pits. I have one on my right ear and he has his on his left ear. It never bothers me, but it does let me know when it needs to be cleared out. I try to clear it out often because it will leak out at incovenient times, just like the previous commentor said, when using a phone. It's kind of embarresing when the pungent gross smell is noticed by others around you. I usually have to take a soapy wash cloth to it make sure to get the smell. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one that has to deal with the odor. My father doesn't have an odor to his. I don't think parents should make a big deal out of this unless your child tells you it's bothering them. The worst thing for a child is a hypochodriac parent. That'll drive them crazy for no reason. I know, my mother was one. That's probably why I'm on this site today.
http://www.emedicine.com/derm/topic922.htm
see above link for more info. i too am here while doing google searches... my daughters is badly infected, needs surgery, she is 6 been ok up till last year or so.. hers itches and smells, and hurts her.. so am researching it more so i know what i can expect etc..
Instead of squeezing it, I use a bent paper clip. I shape it like a needle and use the "hole" part of it to "scoop" out the smelly white stuff. Sometimes I would wipe it on a piece of paper. It usually will dry up in a couple of hours.
Sorry for the grossness!
My mom has this. She squeezes the gunk out every couple of months. It doesnt' seem to bother her much.
Ok well, I couldn't read all of the comments so if something similar has been said before please excuse me.
Me and my sister both wad this ear pit thing since birth. Apparently this thing is genetic, and comes back from generation to generation.
My grandmas grandma and my grandma on my mothers side both had it.
My sister is four years older then me , so when she was born my parent did not know what it was. They brought her to the doctors who for some reason wanted to cut open the pit. Well, my mother said "no chance in hell this is happening." The problem was that Victoria, my sister, as a child scratched the pit all the time (because it is extremely itchy). The pit got infected and from time to time would hurt a lot.
Eventually at the age of 18 she decided to go to the doctors for help. They suggested the same thing again ,but this time Vicky was ok with it. After the operation she had a scar for about three to four months. Apparently the so called pit is a tube connected to some kind of a bag kinda thing filled with the liquid. On the other hand I (A male by the way) never had a problem with the pit, probably because my parents would never let me scratch it. I still have it, and it does not bother me. The liquid disappears with age. Right now it is generated once a couple of months.
Hi,
Someone asked about the antibiotics.. I can't remember the name of the antibiotics we got but I would recommend asking for a sample taker so you can collect some of the pus to get it analysed and right antibiotics described.
Also the infection did not seem to clear with oral antibitocs..(3 weeks course - 3 different antibiotics) so I decided to try some antibiotic cream (cream used for eye infections) and after two days the swelling had gone down and redness etc went few days later. I still think it was because of the antibiotic cream rather than the oral antibiotics.
HTH
Hey!
Thank you so much, everyone that posted! I was thrilled to find out what this thing in my ear was. I'm 17 and was born with it. By boyfriend is extremely intrigued with the hole and likes to stick my earrings in it...but I haven't noticed any problems. I don't think mine has ever been infected. It has all the same symptoms as everyone elses, and I'm just so glad to find out it has a name! Thanks again!
Thank you very much for posting about this. I have the same holes and have always been curious about them. great to know other people out there have it
My daughter- our oldest child was born without any.We are a white family with no history of this that we know of.My oldest son is 15, and when he was a newborn I asked the doctor about his ear pit over the left ear,he told me it was like a large pore where he had not completely formed in the womb. His often had a hard little ball of stuff, that I fished out. It did not bother him, and he was comforted by it and as he got older he used to ask me to pick it, he'd fall asleep with me rubbing it. Then our second son was born with a pit over both ears. I thought it was odd that he too was underdevelloped like the doctor said our other son was. We often said if we'd had another it would have 3 holes!The left ear of our youngest never had any secretions but the right ear is almost always swollen and itchy,and used to ooze yellow thickish fluid, that smelled. He is 13 now and it still does occassionally. As a matter of a fact I came on trying to find out once and for all what it was, so this is great! Right now his right ear pit is very swollen and really sore. I make him scrub it with a wash cloth with warm water and soap, or do it for him if I suspect he has not!The doctor previously prescribed him a cream-
FUCIDIN 2% cream (fucidic acid 2% cream)but I did not really find it worked well.My younger son more than my older son has issues frequently. I often wondered if his hair aggravated it (the oils from) as he has curly hair that covers his ears, and he always wears a ball cap.
I am Japanese, female and 30, and I've had one ear pit next to my right ear ever since I was born like everyone else here. It oozes yellowish-white stuff about every few weeks. I am a little sick right now with watery runny nose, and I just noticed that fairly clear fluid has been coming out of the pit when I squeeze it, quite often today. I guess everything runs when one is sick.. My mom used to swab it with a q-tip, and it's never gotten infected. No one else in my immediate family has one.
-from NorCal
My husband has an ear pit and we both really love it. I squeeze it for him almost every day and it brings great satisfaction for both of us. His stuff doesn't stink though, and it's not runny. Just some really good solid white ear stuff.
Hi, I'm Indonesian (Asia) 26 female and I have pits on both of my ears, my dad only got one on his left ear, my sister and brother doesn't have any. Sometimes some liquid (like sweat) comes out of my right one (but not on the left one) and it really smells. I always avoid people wishpering of my right right because of it.
one of my friend has one and it got infected. The doctor put a small operation on him to (I think) clean the infection and close the pit because he is no longer has it.
Does anyone know how to stop the smell? It bothers me a lot and perfumes doesn't help.
oh, I forgot one point.
if I rub the left one I don't feel anything but if I rub the right one (the one that smell) it feel ticklish, as if there's a deep hole thru my skull.
is it normal?
My son 11 month old son has one. i noticed it after he was born. I noticed it was a little swollen when he awas only a couple of weeks old and I squeezed it and the white stuff came out. I talked to his pediatrician about it. She stated squeezing it actually was keeping it from getting infected. I have noticed It is getting full a lot more now. His Pediatrician has referred me to an ENT in order for them to assess it and possibly close it. I'll let you know what happens.
My son was born with an ear pit, too. His father also has one, btu on the opposite side of his head. My son was also born with hydronephrosis. It is a kidney disorder. My husband had this as well as a child. My son's kidney eventually had to be reconstructed and we are still under medical care for this. His Nephrologist and his Urologist both told me that this is linked to his ear pit. The ears and the kidneys form at the smae time during gestation. I don't know if this is something that you would like to look into. Sometimes hydronephrosis has no outward symptoms.
As soon as my son was born, I noticed his ear pit, which in the words of my late father (who also had one) it was an alien marking.
Five years later, I had my son at the doctors for an evaluation and they noticed the ear pit. I joked about what my Dad said, commented that he had one too. They looked at me funny, so I asked what was wrong.
They asked me what my father died of and how old? I told them that he had Renal Cell Carcinoma and it was at the age of 52.
They ordered a scan to be done of my son, because of the link between an ear pit and kidney disease. WHAT????
And yes I squeeze my son's ear pit when it fills up with puss.
I just cam back from the pediatrician. My 5 week old daughter has this on both of her ears. He is sending me for an mri of her kidneys. He says that the ears and kidneys develop at the same time. The ear pit is a signal that this procedure should be done. May be concerned on the development of her kidneys. Will keep you posted.
Well I am 32 years old female, from Brazil, I have the ear pit on both ears and they never disturbed me. I often squizz them n enjoy doing it -Glad to find out I am not the only one so tyvm for the post :'(
Hey!!!! Very intriguing and interesting...... Have two questions....Is it hereditary??? And 2 People stated that they known people who had the pits removed before....Are there any complications besides that the wound could get infected???
I'm 25 years old and have had this for as long as I can remember...but until today thought it was a cyst!! In my teens I went to a dermatologist who informed me it was a cyst and it could be removed by a simple procedure using a local anesthetic. (The stuff coming out of it had started to smell, and I was SO self-concious about it.) So I had the procedure done, he stitched me up and I went on my way. Until about 6-8 months later when I felt a familiar itch...it was filling back up again! Long story short, I had 2 more "simple" in-office procedures and one more complicated $8,000 (thank goodness for insurance!) day surgery procedure in the hospital performed by a plastic surgeon (something about facial nerves being so close to that area, I was told a plastic surgeon was the safest way to go) and it still comes back. Well NO WONDER!! It is NOT a cyst!! GEEEZ! The only reason I kept going back was because after the 1st surgery the hole was stitched up, so the stuff had nowhere to go and it would get inflamed and infected everytime. The last surgery left me with a thin enough scar so that now when it fills up (still have to let it get HUGE...and red and painful) I can kind of pick at the scar and the skin will just come open and let it drain. I'm so amazed that so many drs. didn't identify this correctly.
My long-winded point: DO NOT have surgery to try to remedy this, no matter how inconvenient you feel it is! Looking back I would not have had even that first procedure done!!
hmm.. OK my baby sis had this infection back in may and it took four months to clear... basically it was an expanding purulent swelling that spread to the periauricular skin tag .. course of different antibiotics for 3 weeks but didn't seem to work, the cream dried it out temporarily...and obv slight pus was coming out of it
so we took her to a walk-in clinic where the doctor literally burst it using a swab but it went down afterwards. It has returned (again) now, and the doctors aren't able to give the correct explanation for it. I'm really worried
I had the surgery to remove my ear pit about 6 years ago. I was REALLY self conscious about the draining. Everything went great and I would highly recommend getting it done. It didn't hurt at all. Simple outpatient procedure and went back a few weeks later to get the few stitches removed. My brother also had the removal procedure done because he did suffer from horrible infections in the ear pit-and everything went great. My sister however has never had much of an issue with her ear pit and never needed the surgery.
^ Are you in the UK? We took my sis to the GP (who didn't have a clue- i don't see the point of GP's in the first place, they are wastes- all the do is give u paracetamol and just tell u to go to the hospital. ridiculous!) .. so she told us to see the ENT.. and knowing the state of the NHS, the next appointment we got was for FEBRUARY. how great! so what are we supposed to do in the meanwhile with the swelling- she's been on antibiotics since MAY (on and off) shes only five!
Perhaps we could take her to A&E but they are most likely to burst it with a swab stick (again).
Anybody suggest anything?
Two of my three children have ear pits (both of my daughters). My husband does, too. I was googling ear pits, because tonight my little 18 month old seems to have some pain around her ear pit. Last week she had an ear infection, so I do wonder if the ear draining is contributing to the bad smell and infection. Yuck. I think I will try rubbing the gunk out tomorrow morning in the warm shower, because she didn't want me anywhere near it tonight. Poor little thing. My older daughter is six years old and has never had these issues. My younger daughter also has hearing loss. Both girls have had kidney ultrasounds and have no kidney problems. There is a disorder called BOR (Brachio-Oto-Renal)Syndrome that this is frequently diagnosed as, because of the broad range of expression (with both ears and kidneys) and the way it is passed on genetically.
Just thought I'd update here - I am the previous poster who was worried about the ear pit infection. We spent the day in the ER yeserday, because it turns out that the tissue behind her ear was infected with a staph infection!!! SCARY! I really think the bacteria entered through the ear pit, because she had no other scratches or cuts around her ear. This has taught me to take the ear pit concerns seriously!
Thank you all so much for all of your posts. My adopted daughter has these "pits" over both her ears and they are so perfectly aligned that I assumed her biological mother had pieced her ears; it just seemed like a strange place to do it.
Now when she becomes aware of them, I can tell her that this is a part of her and her biologicall history. How cool! Thanks again!
I am 25 years old, male, from Brazil and I have had a ear pit on my left ear for as long as I can remember. It has been more than ten years now since a smelly white stuff comes out of it whenever I squeeze it (which I often do). I´ve had it examed and they even measured it's depth. The doctor left for me to decide wheather I would like to have it removed or not. I decided to not go under surgery right now. It doesn't hurt but it gets embaressed when it get's smelly near someone else.
Hello all and yes thank you all for so much information as so many doctors know so little about this and seem to dismiss it quite easily.
I am a 26 year old male with an ear pit on each ear, one that leeks and stinks and gets infected,and the other that is fine and does nothing.
I have been fortunate enough to meet a very intelligent retired french doctor who explained this to me in great detail. He told me that the ear pit as it is called on this site has actually nothing to do with your ears but entirely your skin. I did not know this was hereditary and i know of know one in my family who has this other than my sister who also has one.
The hole that shows on your skin is just an exit for the white or yellow or gold stinky stuff that builds up in the ear pit which is further along close to the nerves that are connected to your jaw. Infection can be very dangerous as it can damage these nerves. in this very moment i am in pain from this pressure on these nerves and there is nothing i can do but try to keep the area clean and get out what i can by squeezing as i was told by this doctor. I dont think that antibiotics are a good solution and definetly know that a good routine cleaning is neccisary to avoid infection. This said mine is infected and I feel threatened by my helplessness. I wish to know from those who posted information regarding their surguries every possible detail of this procedure and what type of specialist I need to seek out,a dertmatologist??? I am in canada so our terms for the medical profession may differ so please if anyone can help in this matter i would be ever grateful.
I would also like to comment on loiving with these ear pits as many parents seem concerned with their childrens social lives and embarassment. I have had this for as long as I can remember. I have changed and grown and my feelings towards this have as well. I hate the odeur of these secretions and they can often be embarrassing especially when reaching the age of intimacy with others. It is absolutly essential to inspire confidence in your children!! They should know every detail about what these earpits are and why and they should know they are not alone and that many people have them,and how important it is to keep them clean. I like the idea of the alien probe as a good way to get curious people or pest to leave the subject alone but i think it is also important to explain to the ones you are closest to what this is and how you deal with it. dont be embarassed as ive just told my friend, ya it isnt fun but its life and im learning something from this about who i am so i should feel special!! I am very interested in the connection between this and kidney disease and i will be looking further into this as it is kind of scary but i dont want a surprise later. Thank you all so much for this info and please please keep writing more as you all learn more. I need to know about the surgery so please if you can, details.... Thank you, glen
please more info on the surgery
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