In a shocking incident in Taiwan, a 64-year-old woman complained of sudden “abnormal sounds” like beating, clicking, and rustling in her ear that disturbed her sleep for the last four days. After a medical inspection, the doctor discovered that a small spider found its way inside the ear along with its exoskeleton.
The whole incident was later published as a case study in the New England Journal of Medicine by the doctors of Tainan Municipal Hospital. In addition, they posted a video on X and stated, “A woman with hypertension came to the clinic four days ago complaining of strange noises coming from her ears.” Examining the left ear revealed the presence of a little crawling spider inside the external auditory canal. There was also the spider’s molted exoskeleton.
As per the doctor’s diagnosis, the method of suction was used from a tube to take out the spider and its exoskeleton and no damage was reported to her eardrums. As soon as the spider was out she found instant relief from the pain.
The retired biology professor at Ohio University has explained the incident as an escape attempt by the spider to feel safe. He said, “Many hunting spiders (i.eThose that do not live in prey-capture webs) seek a sheltered location for the purpose of molting, as they cannot defend themselves from predators during that process.”
The co-author and head of Tainan Municipal Hospital’s otolaryngology department, Dr. Tengchin Wang, told NBC News that the reason the patient didn’t experience any pain was because the spider was so tiny.
Similarly, in April of this year, a woman reported pain in her ear and tinnitus (a ringing sound), and it was discovered that there was a spider within her ear. It was during an endoscopy on the woman’s ear that the doctor found the spider. Thankfully, the doctor noted, the spider was not toxic, and the woman’s ear canal only sustained minor injury.