Answer

Hi XXXXXXXXXX,

This sounds like an aural hematoma. It is a collection of blood within a sac that is usually the result of trauma to the ear. Most commonly the trauma comes from the cat shaking its head or itching its ears repeatedly (they often have an ear infection or a mass in that ear canal).

For treatment, the first concern is to try to determine why the hematoma is present. This usually means a close examination in the ear canal and thorough check of your cats skin. The treatment for the hematoma itself will depend some on its size. If it is quite small, your vet may choose to just let it resolve on it own. If is it larger, than it will need to be surgically incised, drain and then the skin will need to be sutured in a special way to allow the wound to continue to drain, but encourage the two layers of tissue to heal smoothly. This means that a number of sutures will be placed in the ear.

Please let me know if I can be of further help.

Dr. Beth