Ear Infections

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Call your doctor immediately if:

  • Your child has sudden hearing loss, severe pain, or dizziness.
  • Your child seems to be very sick with symptoms such as a high fever and stiff neck.
  • You notice redness, swelling, or pain behind or around your child's ear, especially if your child does not move the muscles on that side of his or her face.

Call your doctor if:

  • You can't quiet your child who has a severe earache with home treatment over several hours.
  • Your baby pulls or rubs his or her ear and appears to be in pain (crying, screaming).
  • Your child's ear pain increases even with treatment.
  • Your child has a fever of 101°F (38.3°C) or higher with other signs of ear infection.
  • You suspect that your child's eardrum has burst, or fluid that looks like pus or blood is draining from the ear.
  • Your child has an object stuck in his or her ear.
  • Your child with an ear infection continues to have symptoms (fever and pain) after 48 hours of treatment with an antibiotic.
  • Your child with an ear tube develops an earache or has drainage from his or her ear.

Watchful Waiting

Watchful waiting is when you and your doctor watch symptoms to see if the health problem improves on its own. If it does, no treatment is necessary. If the symptoms don't get better or get worse, then it’s time to take the next treatment step.

Your doctor may recommend watchful waiting if your child is 2 years of age or older, has mild ear pain, and is otherwise healthy. Most ear infections get better without antibiotics. But if your child's pain doesn't get better with nonprescription children's pain reliever (such as acetaminophen) or the symptoms continue after 48 hours, call a doctor.

Who To See

Health professionals who can diagnose and treat ear infections (acute otitis media) include:

Children who have ear infections often may need to see one of these specialists:

To prepare for your appointment, see the topic Making the Most of Your Appointment.

By: Healthwise StaffLast Revised: May 9, 2011
Medical Review: Michael J. Sexton, MD - Pediatrics
Charles M. Myer, III, MD - Otolaryngology

© 1995-2011 Healthwise, Incorporated. Healthwise, Healthwise for every health decision, and the Healthwise logo are trademarks of Healthwise, Incorporated. This information does not replace the advice of a doctor. Healthwise, Incorporated disclaims any warranty or liability for your use of this information. Your use of this information means that you agree to the Terms of Use. How this information was developed to help you make better health decisions.

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