Encouraging a child to swallow or yawn will allay discomfort by temporarily opening the eustachian tube. You can also ask your pediatrician for pain-relieving eardrops, such as a benzocaine ear solution. After that, antibiotics will generally eliminate pain and fever within 48 hours. But experts say there's no conclusive evidence on these remedies. When your child has an ear infection, your doctor may recommend waiting to see what happens.
Grave complications can arise if an ear infection is left untreated.
These include a ruptured eardrum, felt as a sharp pain or popping sensation, followed by fluid draining out of the ear. Though antibiotics, which relieve pain and fever, usually wipe out the most vulnerable bacteria within 48 hours, a full course of antibiotics is typically required to kill the tougher bacteria. If you fail to complete the full course of medication, those strains may stay intact and repopulate. According to some studies, up to half of all strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae, the most prevalent cause of acute otitis media, now shrug off standard doses of amoxicillin, the first-line treatment. Maintenance antibiotic therapy, as this course of treatment is called, has its place, says Dr. Sculerati, when treating recurrent infections in children whose ears remain clear of fluid between bouts.