Treatment options for otitis media

While many cases of acute otitis media will resolve on their own, with or without intervention, many physicians will elect to treat the infection with an initial round of antibiotics, because in rare cases, the infection can progress to potentially severe and life-threatening conditions.

Medical treatments
Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections, yet because of the overuse of antibiotics, there are now some strains of bacteria that cause ear infections that are resistant to many antibiotics. Antibiotics have no effect on viral infections, which can only be treated symptomatically while the virus runs its course.

Surgical treatments - Surgery is not performed for single bouts of acute otitis media.
Surgical treatments for recurrent acute otitis media (raom) and chronic otitis media with effusion (come) can include:

1. Insertion of a ventilation tube
2. Removal of the adenoids

If fluid in the ear is still present after the initial round of treatment, or there are several occurrences of ear infections in one year, your child's physician may recommend the insertion of a ventilation tube to allow the fluid to drain. This is a relatively quick procedure, but will usually be performed under general anesthesia in a day surgery operating room at a hospital or surgery center.

In cases where ventilation tubes do not resolve the problem and more than one set of ventilation tubes have fallen out, you may be advised to have your child's adenoids removed. As stated, chronically enlarged or infected adenoids can be the cause of recurring acute otitis media, or chronic otitis media with effusion and removing them has not been shown to impair the body's immune system.

In a clincal study, researchers Paradise et al demonstrated that patients who had an adenoidectomy had 47% fewer days with otitis media and 28% fewer acute otitis media episodes in the first year following the surgery. In the second year after undergoing an adenoidectomy, patients had 37% fewer days of otitis present and 35% fewer acute otitis media episodes. Not all adenoidectomies are the same. Click here for more information.

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