Your doctor might think you have an ear infection if you tell him or her that you have an earache. Babies might cry more than usual or tug at their ears or stop eating or drinking. You might have a fever or you might throw up . Sometimes you will have trouble hearing . With the otoscope, the doctor can see your eardrum , the thin wall between your outer and middle ear.
Ear infections make the eardrum red and make it bulge.
If you have an ear infection, when the doctor blows air into your ear, your eardrum will not move in and out as it should. This is a test to see whether your infection is affecting your hearing. With these three tests, the doctor can be pretty sure if you have an ear infection or not. Usually this medicine will cure the infection. Other things that may help the earache are pain relievers like Tylenol, a warm water bottle on the side of your head or medicine drops the doctor can give you for your ears.