Allergic to AirPod Pro eartips

Bought the APP recently and used them about 7-8 hours in total. Here is my current status.

Status Today:

• Ears itchy and moist with swelling.
• left Ear Canal Skin broken.
• can hear Blood pumping in my left Ear.
• Hearing generally muffled.
• Tissue is worst where the Tips touched it.

General Facts:

• used Sennheiser and Bose with Silicone for years, NO problems.
• regular Apple Pods, NO problems.
• IT Consultant and Diver with constant plastic/rubber/silicone/electronic device contact. NO problems in 20 years.
• NO Allergies.

First Assumptions:

• on closer inspection noticed strong chemical Stench coming from the Tips.
• assuming chemical contamination.
• primarily a material issue not a medical one as Silicone Allergies are extremely rare.

Seeking Confirmation:

• called friend (Material Scientist).
• due to smell she assumed Evaporation of (maybe) toxic compound.
• speculated maybe Solvent or Plasticizer.
• instructed me on doing a Smell Test for Evaporation.

Smell Test:

• prepared four Ziploc Bags. (unused and aired-out, neutral smell).
• detach Tips from the Pods and put each part in its own Ziploc Bag. Bags not too big and not too small.
• let parts rest for two hours (longer is better) so whatever evaporates can accumulate in the Bags.
• (prepared an extra fifth bag for the unused Small and Large Tips).
• after two hours gently opened Bags one after the other and immediately but carefully Smell-Tested the Air inside. best to be in a well aired room and take generous breaks between the Tests so the nose can "recalibrate".
• extra Test Bags with Bose/Sennheiser Tips.

Results:

• Bag with the unused Small/Large Tips contained a shocking amount of chemical Stench!
• very similar to Industrial Grade Solvent or and Acidic Cleaning Solution. Smell subsided quickly but still noticeable when in close proximity to nostrils.
• Medium Tips no better, after three days of usage noticeable chemical Stench.
• Pods themselves only very mild (but similar) chemical Stench which vanished very quickly.
• immediately stopped using the Tips and now keep them in a Ziploc Bag.
• Test Bags with Bose/Sennheiser FREE OF STENCH.

Conclusions:

• there is some kind of highly toxic chemical compound evaporating from the APP Silicone Tips.
• Tips are contaminating the Pods inside their charging case. Would explain why more sensitive users react to the whole Pod Assembly with reactions outside of the ear canal.
• Primary Health Issues after using the APP are most likely NOT an Allergy/Infection but something similar to A CHEMICAL BURN! Ears are desperately trying to drain out out the toxic compound. Poisoned skin is drying out and dying. Infections are probably second in the chain since the skin is damaged and ready for bacterial invasion.
• would explain the long healing process and why Antibiotics barely help.
• GENTLY&REGULARLY CLEAN THE AFFECTED AREA WITH A Q-TIP SOAKED IN A SALINE SOLUTION TO WASH OUT THE TOXIC MOLECULES AS BEST AS POSSIBLE.
• selling Millions of Pods with few complaints matters nothing since the reaction might only show in people sensitive to this specific compound.
• if you lack sensitivity the compound used will STILL accumulate and might cause massive health problems long term.
• DO NOT USE SMELLING SILICONE TIPS!
• (checked long term APP owners. pre 2020 production batch seem to be mostly free of these issues as well as the Stench.)

What`s next:

• Stored all the Tips airtight and leave the Pods themselves outside so they can air-out. Will do more Ziploc Smell Tests on the Pods to check on contamination.
• IF Pods have no more noticeable chemical stench I will try third party Tips and run another Test. Results in the thread were mixed maybe due to Pod contamination.
• Will clean affected areas with generous amounts of Saline Solution as mentioned. Two washes today already brought down Itching/Swelling considerably.
• Will Chat with Apple Europe on Monday escalating the Issue.
• Will contact local Labs and Universities for a proper chemical/material analysis. Essential to find out what is used in these Tips to cause such violent reactions.

I will update the post as it develops.