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A doctor has removed a live spider from a woman's ear canal after realising that it had been weaving a web inside for at least a week.

The elderly patient, who has not been named, had been complaining of constant itching and a stinging pain to her family until she was brought to a hospital for inspection.

Experts at the Mianyang Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Sichuan province of south-western China performed a scan inside the woman's ear.

Footage taken inside the consultation room reveals a spider coming to view as it crawls around its web inside the patient's ear.

It emerges from behind its web and scrambles to protect itself from the medical equipment.

(Image: AsiaWire)

The arachnid is believed to have been living in its warm and moist new "den" for at least a week, according to local reports.

Ear, nose and throat specialist Liu Jun said the patient visited the hospital’s outpatient clinic with her daughter on April 22.

The pensioner from Yanting County complained of ringing in her ears and occasional itching, followed by a "stinging pain".

Doctor Liu spotted a ball of silk in the woman’s ear canal and recommended she be given an otoscopy, which revealed that a live spider had been living inside.

He paralysed the spider with chemical ear drops and removed it with a pair of tweezers a minute later.

The patient’s ear, which had fortunately not been damaged by the spider, was then cleaned with a saline solution, the medic added.

The patient said the spider likely crawled into her ear while she was working on a vineyard one week ago.

Doctor Liu said: "It was fortunately that the spider was small and didn’t rupture her eardrum, otherwise she might have suffered hearing loss.

(Image: AsiaWire)

"It’s not common for small insects or animals to be found inside the ear, but this wasn’t an isolated case either.

"I once treated a patient whose ear had been invaded by an insect which later laid eggs.

"Personal hygiene is the key to preventing this. But should an insect enter your ear, do not try to remove it by yourself. Always seek medical attention."