Ear Pain & Infections

Ear infections are the most common reason kids visit the doctor. Help parents understand the causes of ear pain and provide them with tips on how to identify and treat ear infections.

Brought to you by:

MOTRIN®

TYLENOL®

SMARTCHECK®

Parent counseling tips

Causes of ear pain

Ear infection: Viruses or bacteria get behind the eardrum and irritate the middle ear
Ear injury: A cotton swab or fingernail can scrape the ear canal
Earwax: A buildup or blockage of earwax can cause pain
Foreign object: Young children sometimes put small objects in their ear canal
Airplane ear: Air pressure, like on an airplane or while mountain driving, can make the eardrum hurt
Swimmer’s ear: When water gets trapped in the ear, the lining of the ear canal could get infected

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All About Ear Pain

Signs of an ear infection

More crying than usual

Fever or headache

Trouble sleeping or hearing

Liquid coming out of one ear (or both)

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Tips for Treating Ear Infections

Managing symptoms of ear pain or infection

Watch and wait: Most ear infections get better in a few days
Cold pack: Put a cold wet washcloth on the outer ear for 20 minutes
Pain medicine: Give TYLENOL® or MOTRIN® to help reduce the pain; talk to a healthcare professional if you have questions or concerns
Antibiotics: About 80% of children with middle ear infections get better without antibiotics. Talk to your doctor about whether antibiotics may be right for your child.

Try using an at-home otoscope

The SmartCheck® Digital Ear Scope turns almost any smartphone into an otoscope
Caregivers can record videos or images of their child’s eardrum, share their recordings, and receive expert care from home
Get more information about the SmartCheck® Digital Ear Scope

Good to know

Antibiotic stewardship

In response to the overuse of antibiotics in pediatric care, organizations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society (PIDS) recommend that pediatric healthcare facilities implement Antibiotic Stewardship Programs (ASPs).

In an outpatient setting, the role of an ASP includes:

Establishing standardized approaches for antibiotic prescribing
Focusing on judicious use of antibiotics for acute respiratory tract infections
Discouraging antibiotic prescribing for undifferentiated upper respiratory tract infection, bronchiolitis, acute bronchitis, nonstreptococcal pharyngitis, and urinary tract infections in the absence of urinalysis
Encouraging judicious diagnosis of acute otitis media, acute sinusitis, and group A streptococcal pharyngitis
Ensuring that patients are prescribed the narrowest-spectrum antibiotics for the shortest duration of therapy that will optimize outcomes