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Ear pain when lying down, pressure in the ear, headache, fever up to 38 degrees Celsius - did you experience any of these? If so, it could be that the earache you are feeling is a sign of otitis media. Otitis media often occurs in children, but that doesn't mean adults can't develop this condition. So, what if this happens?
What is otitis media?
Otitis media is an ear infection in the middle ear. This infection is generally caused by bacteria or viruses. Earache otitis media is very painful and annoying. It can even make it difficult for people to sleep because of inflammation as well as the buildup of fluid in the middle ear area. In addition, fluid can also come out of the ear.
This ear infection does not cause complications in the long term. However, there are still some complications that can occur if this infection is not treated.
For example, hearing impairment, infection spread to other parts, such as mastoiditis (an infection that spreads to the mastoid bone), and tearing of the eardrum. These complications are not permanent, they can be cured when the otitis media infection is treated properly. Therefore, proper otitis media treatment is needed.
How to treat otitis media?
When experiencing otitis media, there are several things to be overcome, namely the pain you experience, and the drugs needed to fight bacteria.
Overcoming pain
To overcome this pain, there are generally two things you can do:
Warm compress
Put a warm, damp cloth over the affected ear to reduce pain.
Pain medicine
Your doctor will usually suggest using over-the-counter pain relievers, such as acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil, Mortin IB) to relieve unstoppable pain using a warm compress.
Use this pain reliever medication according to the dosage and instructions given. Especially if this is experienced by children. It's best to talk to your doctor before giving pain medication due to otitis media to a child.
Against bacterial growth
In addition to reducing pain caused by infection, antibiotics may also be given to fight bacterial attacks that occur in the ear. There are many antibiotic options commonly given to people with otitis media:
- Amoxicillin (Amoxil, Trimox, Wymox)
- Cefixime (Suprax)
- Cefuroxime Axetil (Ceftin)
- Cefprozil (Ceffil)
- Cefpodoxime (Vantin)
- Cefdinir (Omnicef)
- Clindamycin (Cleocin HCl)
- Clarithomycin (Biaxin)
- Azithromycn (Zithromax)
- Ceftriaxone (Rocephin)
All antibiotic options given are antibiotics that are taken by mouth, not those that are dripped into the ear. For more information, consult your doctor directly.
