Cauliflower Ear - What you need to know about cauliflower ears.

What causes cauliflower ear? Cauliflower ear, which is also known as hematoma auris, perichondrial hematoma, or acute auricular hematoma is a condition that causes a swelling and deformation of the ears that resembles a cauliflower. Cauliflower ears are commonly found in athletes such as wrestlers, boxers, martial artists, rugby players, and any other sport in which competitors take regular abuse to the external portion of the ear. The result of the abuse could be the development of a blood clot under the perichondrium, causing the cartilage to die due to its separation from overlying perichondrium that serves as the source of the nutrients for the cartilage, ultimately causing the cauliflower ear to look like it does. Usually the looks are the only bad side effect of having cauliflower ear. Hearing shouldn't really be affected much unless the ear canal is completely blocked by the swolen cartilage tissue, but hearing loss is definitely a possibility.