La Otitis is one of the infectious-contagious diseases that most affects children between 0 and 7 years of age. Approximately between 70 and 80% of children have had an episode of otitis media, but adults can also suffer from it.
It manifests with significant discomfort, since the part of the middle ear is triggered with inflammation caused by a virus or bacteria. Depending on your symptoms and the duration of this disease, it can be evaluated if it is acute otitis media (with a serous exudate) or acute, being the most common.
How does otitis media manifest?
Otitis media is caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. Other germs that are also implicated are Haemophilus influenza and Moraxella catarrhalis. Is about an infection on the top of the head, usually in the ear, causing a general malaise, fever and hearing loss.
80% of children have presented an episode of acute otitis media before the age of 3 and 40% of them will develop up to 6 episodes by the age of 7. This disease manifests itself more when there is sudden temperature changes and especially in the male gender, in boys or girls when they have a poor diet, when they have had a low weight or exposure to smoking or pollution.
Otitis media is subdivided into:
- Sharp, with an approximate duration of 3 weeks.
- subacute, when its duration lasts between 3 weeks and 3 months,
- Crónica, when it lasts more than 3 months.
Symptoms of water otitis media and how to identify it
Acute otitis media has very characteristic symptoms. The boy You can feel irritated, with nausea, vomiting and especially fever. If it is difficult to identify in babies, it will be felt by their constant crying or because they approach their hand to their ear or do not want to breastfeed.
One of the ways that can be done to find out if you feel pain or inflammation, is to gently touch and massage the part around the ear outlet. If he feels pain he will cry and it will be one of the symptoms. No need to introduce blunt rods or needles inside the ear under any circumstances. In addition to causing damage, it can push the wax back into the ear canal and further increase the trauma.
Must be observed when the symptoms last more than a day, if the pain is intense and you have hardly been able to sleep. In addition, it is usually associated with a cold or respiratory infection. You can see how a secretion of fluid or pus comes out of the ear, this is due when the eardrum has ruptured due to infection.
What to do when there are such symptoms?
You have to go to a medical center to be evaluated by a professional or pediatrician. The best evaluation and treatment of said infection will be diagnosed. The pediatrician should assess the signs and symptoms of said infection, Observing otalgia, acute otorrhea or otoscopy, being the ones who cause said inflammation.
Which is the best treatment?
There are studies that certify that for this type of case the best solution is for it to be resolved spontaneously, but generally antibiotics are usually given. With this type of medicine, it helps to a large extent so that the symptoms and the infection are reduced as soon as possible. The main treatments include:
- Antibiotics: Antibiotics are not administered on the first day of fever, but a margin of 48 to 72 hours is left from the first symptoms. Along with the first symptoms, analgesics are prescribed to alleviate the discomfort and after 3 days the antibiotic is administered to combat the bacteria that are causing them.
- Analgesics: It is an oral treatment and it is administered as an anti-inflammatory. It helps combat many of the symptoms, such as pain and fever, as well as the appearance of intracranial sequelae.
- myringotomy: This treatment is prescribed when such an infection lasts for weeks or when it is repeated several times. In addition, a bulging of the tympanic membrane will be observed, along with intense and long-lasting pain. Said treatment will end when it is observed that said typology no longer exists.
Is there some kind of prevention for recurrent cases of acute otitis media?
There is a vaccine in the vaccination calendar against pneumococci, H. influenzae type B and influenza, which decreases the possibility of contracting acute otitis media. It is recommended not to leave the baby asleep with the bottle, nor to smoke nearby and to cover the ear area well when there are sudden changes in temperature.
Faced with such signs and observing significant discomfort to the baby or child, it is necessary to go to a medical center for an assessment. This infection is usually accompanied by a general malaise, fever and even with colds.