Ear exam

Follow below steps to perform the exam:

  1. Connect the otoscope module and attach correct size ear speculum – small (2.5 mm) for children under 3 years old, large (4.0 mm) for adults and children above 3 years old.
  2. Hold the device horizontally.
  3. Select correct ear – left or right.
  4. Click “START” before inserting the otoscope into patient’s ear – the recording will start automatically.
  5. Pull firmly the patient’s earlobe diagonally back and up and insert the otoscope into the ear canal – search for the tympanic membrane.
  6. Once you get a good quality picture a green tick will appear on the upper right corner of the screen – you can remove the otoscope from patient’s ear and after that click “STOP”.

 

Remember about below hints:

  • The stronger you pull the ear lobe the straighter the ear canal will be, and the exam will be easier and more comfortable to perform.
  • There might be ear wax or hair blocking the view. Try to insert the otoscope a little bit deeper to go past them. It might happen that the amount of ear wax will make it impossible to see the tympanic membrane.

Avoid the most common mistakes:

  • Choosing wrong size of speculum or not attaching it.
  • Holding the device vertically
  • Not pulling the earlobe.
  • Not inserting the otoscope deep enough.
  • Not knowing what to search for – what tympanic membrane looks like.

See examples of correctly performed exam:

The image contains clearly visible:

  • umbo
  • manubrium of malleus
  • light reflex (on healthy tympanic membrane)

See examples of incorrectly performed exam:

The image contains clearly visible:

  • not inserting otoscope deep enough and therefore not visualizing the tympanic membrane
  • wrong size of speculum

See examples of not diagnostic images because of the patient’s anatomy:

There might be cases when it’s not possible to visualize the tympanic membrane:

  • too much hair
  • too much earwax

Version: 1.0