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 and so the cartilage can heal back together 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.