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Home › Articles › Toddler Health › A Pain in the Ear

A Pain in the Ear

Ear Infections in Young Children

By Teri Brown

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Babies and toddlers get colds all the time. The worst symptoms of an average cold last just a few days and then taper off. But what if your child begins tugging at his ear, has trouble sleeping and seems more irritable than usual? Chances are your child has developed an ear infection.

According to the American Academy of Family Physicians, more than three out of four children will have at least one ear infection by their third birthday. If left untreated, these infections can lead to permanent hearing loss.

Ear Infections 101
Exactly what is an ear infection and how do you get them? Your ear contains three main parts: the outer or visible ear, the middle ear and the inner ear.

An ear infection, or acute otitis media as it is also called, is when the middle ear, a grape-sized space behind the ear drum, becomes filled with fluid that would normally drain out. Because of unusually high amounts of liquid or inflammation due to a cold or other reasons, however, it does not drain properly.

The Eustachian tube is a small tube that leads to the back of the throat. This is the part that generally becomes clogged. One reason children may be so susceptible to ear infections is that their Eustachian tubes are much shorter than those of an adult.

Symptoms
Trina Strahl, a homemaker from Beaverton, Ore., had no idea she was going to become an expert on ear infections, but that is exactly what happened when her son ended up with a series of chronic infections. "My son had several dozen over a period of 14 months," says Strahl. "He was on medication more than he was off."

Strahl became used to the symptoms that signaled another infection – fever, intense crying, night waking, listlessness and digging at his ears. "Eventually, this was routine behavior," says Strahl. "Toward the end, he had become resistant to so many medications, they no longer cleared the fluid from his ears, and he was diagnosed with a chronic infection."

According to Dr. James Thomsen, a specialist in otolaryngology for Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and Pediatric Ear, Nose & Throat of Atlanta, the most common symptoms of ear infection in children are:

  • Ear pain or pulling at the ears.
  • Fever.
  • A temporary decrease in hearing.
  • Fussiness or not being able to sleep.
  • Vomiting or diarrhea.
  • Lack of appetite.
  • Pus draining from the ear.

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