Swimmer's ear can be caused by many types of bacteria or fungi that invade the ear canal (that tubular opening that draws sound from external sources to the eardrum).
When bacteria or fungi invades broken skin in the ear canal, they penetrate and cause an infection.
In essence, any irritation of the skin lining of the ear canal can cause swimmer's ear. Here are certain events that may increase the risk of developing swimmer's ear :
· Too much moisture in the ear canal may cause the skin to break
· Too much dry skin can easily crack
· Improper ear cleaning with cotton applicators or other objects
Though the main cause of swimmer's ear is water trapped in the ear canal, especially by swimmers because of their increased exposure to water, but it can affect anybody due to skin irritation such as :
· Hair sprays that proceeds into the ear
· Inserting foreign objects into the ear canal
· Scratching the ear canal
The above information thankfully comes from the entmags.org at the following link.