還在用棉籤掏耳朵？小心顱內感染！
平時沒事喜歡用棉籤掏耳朵？這其實是一種錯誤的習慣，因爲用棉籤清潔耳朵可能會導致更嚴重的後果，比如顱內感染。
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.
據報道，一名習慣每天用棉籤清潔耳朵的女性發生顱內感染，導致生命受到威脅。
cotton swab：棉籤
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！》雜誌報道稱，這位名爲茉莉的37歲女性說，她每天晚上用棉籤清潔耳朵。久而久之，她注意到左耳聽力出現問題，最後去看了醫生。一開始，醫生說她有耳部感染並給她開了抗生素。
antibiotics [,æntɪbaɪ'ɒtɪks]：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。不久後她發現，清潔耳朵後，棉籤上出現血跡。
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.
由於聽力測試顯示她有中度耳聾，茉莉被轉給一位耳鼻喉專家，這位專家給她做了CT掃描，結果很糟糕：她受到細菌感染，並且感染正在“侵蝕”她耳後的顱骨。
"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.
爲了把受感染的組織摘除並重建耳道，茉莉接受了5小時的手術。外科醫生告訴她，棉纖維卡在了她已經受到感染的耳朵裏。
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年的時間裏，棉纖維不斷聚集並潰爛。我耳後的顱骨已經變得像紙一樣薄。”
fester ['festə]：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.
商業內幕網站報道稱，棉籤可以安全地清潔耳朵是一種誤解。事實並非如此。實際上，棉籤的包裝袋上寫着：“別用棉籤掏耳朵。”
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. 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會說，一般而言，“應該避免把一些東西弄到耳朵裏”，包括棉籤。用棉籤清潔耳朵實際上可能事與願違，並把耳垢推回到耳朵裏。此外，棉籤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 [,kaʊntəprə'dʌktɪv]：adj.使達不到預期目標的
earwax ['ɪəwæks]：n.耳垢；耳屎
eardrum ['ɪədrʌm]：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，英格蘭的醫生報告了一名男子的病例，棉籤的棉花頭卡在了他的耳道里，之後患者出現頭骨感染。
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."
手術治好了茉莉的感染，但她的聽力損失卻不可逆轉。她說：“現在，我想要警告所有人注意誤用棉籤的危險。我們的耳朵非常脆弱敏感，需要小心護理。”
