coliflower ear

[Maddwraph]

how come grapplers get this when they do it for a while? how long does it take them to get it? and is it easy to fix, does the procedure to get them hurt and is expensive? i dont really want these things so if anyone knows about it, please share.

[AndrewGreen]

Boxers get them too.

Comes from damaging the ear, they swell up but don't naturally drain so the blood hardens.

Most people will never get them, a few get them fairly easily.

If you do, get them drained right away and it won't harden. If it hardens it's harder to fix.

If you find you are getting them, you can wear headgear like the wrestlers do: http://www.illinoiswrestling.com/2003/conantphotos1.html

Anyways, I wouldn't worry about it too much. They are easy enough to deal with unless you leave them, and headgear will protect you. Train smart and look after yourself and you will be fine.

[SubGrappler]

Andrew is correct, but I could add a little more about the subject, since I've had to deal with it numerous times.

"Cauliflower" ear is caused when theres enough trauma caused to your ear to cause swelling- its the same as if you had a bad bruise that swelled up on your hand- the consequences of it are different though.

Heres the catch- natrually your ears arent very large, so theres not a lot of space for fluid when it starts to swell up. As fluid accumulates, the skin needs to expand. As the skin expands, it is literally torn away from the cartilage that composes the structure of your ear. Unfortunately, the only blood supply that the cartilage has is through the skin surrounding it (your ear) and when this is torn away, the cartilage slowly begins to die, shriveling up and hardening in its characteristic way.

The skin can not re attach itself if the ear is not drained (and applying a gauze for pressure will help afterwards). If this is done soon enough, you wont develop the ears. The longer and longer you wait, the more damaged and deformed your ears become. Natrually, just draining it wont allow for your ears to heal, but you must also stop training IF you dont want to damage them further. Constant draining while still training works, but you'll end up having a little more damage to your ear since you never allowed it to recover. In instances when the ear is drained often and grapplers continue training, the deformity is often only noticable if you look for it (i.e. it wont stick out like a sore thumb ala Randy Couture).

The procedure to drain them is quite simple-sterilize the ear (rub with alcohol) numb the ear up- (I prefer ethyl chloride which is a spray that numbs on contact) and using a large guage needle, you simply stick it in and suck the blood out. The pockets may form in various places, so it may take 3-4 pricks to get the majority of the fluid out. Its kinda an in and out procedure IF you can find an ER that will do it for you (if you know a friend who's a nurse or physician, this makes things easier).

I would advise against attempting this procedure yourself though. If you do not sterilize the ear properly (like a friend who tried using a sewing needle) there is a chance of creating an infection in the ear. Once again, you cant fight an infection in your cartilage if theres no blood going to it, and if the infection is bad enough, you'll end up with amputated ears. This is highly uncommon and basic sterilization will easily prevent this (in other words dont try to solve your own problem and stick a knife in your ear at dinner time).

The whole process of getting the ears and healing may last as long as a month (assuming one keeps training). If you drain and let it heal, usually only takes a week before you can go back to training. Do they hurt? You better believe it.

Once the ears are screwed up however, theres no going back- this is a permanent deformity that may only be fixed via plastic surgery. Its so common among grapplers though that its not an uncommon thing to have. If you're going to keep grappling as well, this would also defeat the purpose of getting plastic surgery (which you'd probably have to pay for) to fix your ears.

Jiu Jitsu fighters get it mostly due to headlocks and head control. The same can be said with wrestlers, but when going for takedowns and off balancing people, they're taught to push with their head (sometimes they use the front, sometimes the sides where their ears are). Boxers also get it from punches to the ear.

Its not something you accidentally get. Most the people who have it are hardcore fighters who dont like to stop training for any reason at all. If you're really scared about getting them, its a simple process of not training when your ear starts to swell up (so that it may heal).

[Maddwraph]

wow, thanks a lot, i dont really want them, for the look tot ell you the truth. ill keep a close eye on them when things do happen, and ill probably get the head gear even though i hate them.

[SubGrappler]

You really dont need head gear, and cauliflower ear isnt going to be something that sneaks up on you (i.e. you're not going to wake up one morning and go "oh no!").

Your ears will be more than generous when they want to tell you that they're in pain and accumulating fluid. Take into account how often you train. If you train everyday, head gear is an option, since you'll be constantly irritating your ears. If you're only training 2-3 x a week, I seriously wouldnt worry about it.

[combatchaz]

Some of my training partners never got it and some would get it after a few weeks. If you scar easily, your probally more prone to califlower.

[SubGrappler]

Some people suggest that its a matter of genetics i.e. "your ears get messed up easy- his dont"

I think its more along the lines of the style of play you have. A top player is less likely to have people grabbing his head than a bottom player (since head control is important when looking to pass the guard). Some people protect their heads very well, others not so well. Also take into account how your main training partners pass, whether it be controlling the hips or controlling the head.

[KarateKicked]

my coach has cauliflower ear bad on one side and the other is hardly noticeable. but you do have to train alot to get it. i noticed my ear swelling up after we practiced takedowns for a good hour. im gonna look into headgear though because i really dont want them.

[glockmeister]

Two newbies who are wrestlers showed up at BJJ class last night and both of them had a real bad case of this. I dont know how long they had it and I didnt ask them about it but man it looked seriously bad. It was painful just to look at.

[McNerny]

Hey,

This is slightly off topic but I have to share this story. Just today at wrestling one of our wrestlers that has cauliflower got it busted open. It bled all over the side of his face and on his shirt. After he washed it off he put gauze over it and wrapped his head with tape. He returned to the mat and kept wrestling. Moral of the story: cauliflower ear is not cool

McNerny