Tag: popping

What to Do About Your Child’s Earache

Does your child’s ear hurt? What shold you do about it?

Kids commonly complain of earaches.

Some don’t necessarily complain of an earache (otalgia), but just tug at their ears or a little more fussy than usual, so you might just think that it’s their ears.

Surprisingly, an earache doesn’t always mean that your kids have an ear infection.

Why Does Your Child’s Ear Hurt?

Tick bites would be a rare cause of ear pain.
Tick bites would be a rare cause of ear pain. Photo by Vincent Iannelli, MD

So what else besides an actual ear infection can cause an earache?

Does your child have a new tooth coming in?

Has he been swimming? (swimmer’s ear)

Does he have a sore throat or runny nose? (although most middle ear infections come after a few days of cold symptoms, simply having a sore throat or runny nose might cause some ear pain)

As you can imagine, lots of things can cause earaches, but the most common include:

  • teething
  • swimmer’s ear (otitis externa) – unlike otitis media, these kids typically have outer ear pain, or pain when you move or tug on their ear lobe
  • middle ear effusions – fluid that is left over in the middle ear after an ear infection (has nothing to do with swimming)
  • sinus congestion – some kids associate the extra ear popping that comes with allergies or a cold/sinus infection as being painful or uncomfortable
  • pharyngitis – because of referred pain, some kids with sore throats complain of ear pain instead of throat pain

And then some younger kids simply tug on their ears because they can. They are otherwise well, sleeping all night, eating well, and aren’t fussy.

What else can cause earaches? A toothache, too much earwax, or that rock your kid put in his ear a few weeks ago…

What to Do About Your Child’s Earache

Once you know why your child has an earache, which typically means a trip to your pediatrician, you need to know what to do about it.

You’re thinking a prescription for an antibiotic is coming, right?

Many parents will be happy to hear that most earaches won’t mean an automatic antibiotic prescription. Instead, your pediatrician will likely:

  • recommend symptomatic care for teething
  • prescribe antibiotic ear drops for swimmer’s ear
  • recheck your child’s middle ear effusion in a few months, as this goes away on it’s own in most cases without any treatment
  • treat underlying congestion from allergies, colds, or a sinus infection as needed
  • recommend symptomatic care for a sore throat

But what if your child really does have a middle ear infection? Then he will get antibiotics, right?

Not necessarily.

Since most ear infections get better on their own, antibiotics are typically reserved for:

  • children under age 6 months with acute otitis media (typically ear pain and a bulging ear drum)
  • children who are at least 6 months with acute otitis media and severe signs or symptoms, including moderate or severe pain for at least 48 hours or a temperature of 102.2°F (39°C) or higher
  • children who are under 24 months with “double” ear infections – both ears are infected at the same time, even if they just have mild symptoms

For most other children, instead of having you start antibiotics right away, your pediatrician might have you wait for 48 hours – the observation option. You can then start the antibiotics if your child doesn’t get better after a period of watchful waiting for two or three days. Until then, an age-appropriate dose of Tylenol (acetaminophen) or Motrin (ibuprofen) can often help control pain or fever.

In addition to your pediatrician, a pediatric ENT specialist can be helpful if your child has persistent ear pain.

What to Know About Children with Earaches

While it is sometimes obvious to know what is going on when older kids complain of ear pain, it is important to understand that not every earache means an ear infection, and even when it does, it might not mean a prescription for an antibiotic.

More on Children with Earaches