Cauliflower ear (or an auricular hematoma) is when the front and back cartilage of the ear separate and fill with blood which eventually hardens.

How cauliflower ear strikes – Rough contact with the ear. This damage can happen in an instant in fight sports. For example, one hard takedown, escaping a submission, or a single punch.

Why is this important? – Unlike a normal bruise where the clotted blood has somewhere to go, the blood in the ear has no escape, so it hardens exactly where it is and then becomes a permanent deformity.

Long-term consequences – The consequences of fully formed cauliflower ear range from simply having deformed ears to problems such as:

Trouble using headphones

Prejudice in professional settings

Loss of hearing

The outer edge of the ear can even fold over and die!

The one common consequence for all who experience cauliflower ear is pain. It hurts when you train, it hurts when you’re done, it hurts enough to keep you awake all night!

The basic idea is the athlete can mold their ear before its damaged to wear AFTER TRAINING to keep the ear compressed so that there's no space that can fill with fluid meaning they can't get cauliflower ear, even without wearing headgear!

We built upon the research of multiple studies to make a cauliflower ear prevention kit formatted specifically to allow anyone without any medical background to make a simple mold of the athlete’s ear in just 5 minutes.

With the mold made, the athlete simply needs to wear the kit for a few hours after training when the ear is sore to prevent it from ever taking on fluid. (Never wear EarSplintz while training or competing.)

The problem with headgear is that unless the athlete wears headgear 100% of the time (practice, matches, drilling, and screwing around with friends) then headgear isn't 100% effective. And that's assuming that the headgear is working properly when it is worn. There are many cases where improperly fitted headgear can cause cauliflower ear!

The real problem with headgear is that it is very annoying to wear, so most wrestlers relish any opportunity to take it off even at the expense of their ears.

This is where EarSplintz really shines. Rather than needing to wear headgear 100% of the time, simply have your EarSplintz on hand, and if the ear hurts, wear the molds for a few hours to overnight to ensure that the ear heals so they are ready to go the next day. This is why our compliance is so high. It means they only need to think about their ears every few months rather than every time they get on the mat.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

As cited in the original study and future studies. EarSplintz will work to help a damaged ear heal even if it has already filled and subsequently had the cauliflower ear drained. (We do not recommend self draining cauliflower ear at home, please consult a medical professional before making medical decisions.)

That being said, once the ear has filled, recovery is more painful and time-consuming (days vs hours) than preventing it in the first place.

There are many ways to create pressure for the ear, clothespins, tightly wrapping the head, clamps, and magnets. However, none of these options take into account the original shape of the ear or protect the whole ear at once. (So the fluid doesn’t simply flow around the magnet and fill another part of the ear). They also don’t have a way of regulating the specific pressure needed for your individual ear. You mold EarSplintz SPECIFICALLY to your ear in 360-degrees. Both front and back. Now the original shape is maintained and the pressure is customized to be firm enough to prevent the ear from filling and soft enough to be the least painful option available. EarSplintz is also the only option that creates compression inside the ear canal preventing the worst case scenario, loss of hearing from cauliflower ear. Last but not least. One of my favorite things is putting the EarSplintz molds in the freezer to wear as a cold compress! We have more than enough material for you to mold both ears twice (4 ears worth). This means you can make one mold for the gym bag and a second mold to keep in the freezer. This is about the most soothing thing when your ears are burning after a hard night of grappling.