Bump covering ear piercing on ear lobe

[littlemissy0924]

Hello, I have two ear piercings in each of my ear lobes. The first of the two on either ear used to have the feeling of two tiny beads on the inside of my ear lobe right around the holes. My mom said it was scar tissue that was building up. Those piercings were done in 2004, and only recently within maybe the past year or so did the bead feeling greatly decrease to feeling almost nothing there. Now on my upper ear piercing on my ear lobe (left ear) there is an external growth that feels and looks like a little tiny bead. I noticed it a year ago and within the year it has grown very minimally, but it is completely covering the back part of the hole. I have been putting on antibiotic cream, (Neosporin) around it and cleaning it, because I do believe that it is built up scar tissue. Will it be able to go away easily over time also, or will it have to be taken off? It causes no pain, but is just annoying being there. What kind of procedures are available for its' removal, and does it seem necessary to do so in a rush? ( I only ask because I don't have medical insurance.)

[nobugs]

what do you mean  excised ?? thanks

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
From the symptoms it sounds like an epidermoid cyst. It is a benign cyst which can be caused by a blocked pore adjacent to a body piercing. It needs to be excised when infected/painful or when cosmetically causing problems. My sincere advice would be to discuss this possibility with your dermatologist.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your dermatologist. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.