SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 9 — San Francisco-based start-up company Clear Ear is currently crowdfunding for two products that could promote ear health and push the cotton swab into the scrap books of commercial nostalgia along with vinyl records, VCRs and rotary dial telephones.

Clear Ear has two products — one for everyday use called the Oto-Tip and another for flushing wax build-up, a procedure that once necessitated a visit to the doctor’s.

Oto-Tip is a motorised spinning swab that cleans by lifting debris onto its non-abrasive, flexible coil which is detachable and reusable upon washing.

The method trumps conventional cleaning by means of cotton swabs because earwax is less likely to be pushed further into the ear canal where it could impact the wax, known as cerumen in medical terms.

The device is designed not to penetrate the ear canal deep enough to harm the eardrum, which is another well-known risk of ear cleaning.

Clean Ear’s other product, the TEC Home, provides a deep cleaning that can be necessary upon occasion due to naturally occurring impaction or as a result of improper cleaning techniques.

It warms the water to body temperature before use to prevent dizziness and its three water streams are directed at the outer walls of the ear canal to avoid putting direct pressure on the eardrum.

The TEC Home is rechargeable and the tip and water container are detachable and reusable. It can be pre-ordered for US$100 (RM320), and the Oto-Tip can be pre-ordered for US$30 — both from the company’s Indiegogo campaign page.

Shipping is expected to start in December, and funds were nearing 50 per cent of a US$30,000 goal with 12 days remaining. There’s also the possibility to donate to the company’s Here and There programme, bringing health screening and ear cleaning to students in Varni, India.

Everyday ear cleaning is controversial among doctors, many of whom say cerumen is normal and that non-impacted accumulation cleans and protects the ear against outside bacteria, although the company says wax buildup is the number one cause of impaired hearing worldwide. — AFP-Relaxnews

San Francisco start-up Clean Ear crowdfunding way to develop two products to clean ears and remove wax Next Media