The ear canal is made up of a cartilaginous part and a bony part. The cartilaginous part is covered by thick skin which has numerous sebaceous glands and ceruminous glands. The ceruminous glands are modified sweat glands. They secrete a fluid rich in lipids and pigment granules. This secretion along with the secretion of the sebaceous glands forms the wax or cerumen. It also contains epithelial debris, keratin and dirt. This wax has a protective function. It prevents the entry of foreign bodies into the ear. Sometimes, this wax is produced in large quantities and it gets retained in the ear canal. It may get hardened leading to hearing loss. This impacted wax can be removed by a procedure called syringing. In this, a stream of water is forced into the ear canal. The pressure of the water forces the wax out. In advanced cases, a cerumen hook is used to drag out the whole of the wax as a single piece. Even if this is not possible, the wax is softened by instilling a few drops of sodium bicarbonate and then removed.