Ear Infection

An ear infection (otitis media) is an infection of the middle ear, most common in infants and young children partly because their eustachian tubes are shorter and more horizontal, making fluid drainage less efficient.

Symptoms

In children, signs include ear pain (or tugging at the ear in infants who can't describe pain), difficulty sleeping, fussiness, reduced appetite, and sometimes fever or fluid draining from the ear. In adults, ear pain, a feeling of fullness, and temporary hearing changes are typical.

Causes

Ear infections usually follow a cold or other upper respiratory infection, when swelling blocks the eustachian tube and fluid builds up behind the eardrum, creating an environment where bacteria or viruses can grow.

Treatment

Many ear infections, particularly mild ones in children over two, improve on their own within a few days, and pain relievers can manage discomfort in the meantime. Current pediatric guidance also allows this watch-and-wait approach for non-severe, one-sided ear infections in children as young as six months, when decided together with a doctor rather than assumed automatically. Antibiotics are generally reserved for more severe cases, infections in very young infants, or ones that don't improve — a doctor's exam is needed to make this call, since it requires looking at the eardrum directly.

When to See a Doctor

See a doctor for severe or worsening ear pain, high fever, fluid or pus draining from the ear, symptoms lasting more than two to three days, or any ear infection in an infant under six months.