The virus that causes ear infections can also affect the bowels. A change in sleep habits. That's because her sound sleeper suddenly begins waking in the night and crying in her sleep. An ear infection results when fluid and bacteria build up in your child's eardrum and middle ear. But if the Eustachian tube is blocked because of swelling caused by a cold, a sinus infection, or even an allergy, fluid is trapped in the middle ear.
Bacteria thrive in dark, warm, wet places, and a fluid-filled ear is an ideal breeding ground.
As the infection worsens, so does the swelling and pain in and around the eardrum. Fever develops as your child's body fights the infection. As children grow to adulthood, the tube triples in length and becomes more vertical, so fluid can drain more easily. Ear infections are among the most common childhood illnesses. While no one has compiled statistics on how many toddlers get them, the American Academy of Pediatrics conservatively estimates that most children will have at least one by age 3.