Patient's question:
My baby has developed otitis externa. How should it be treated? Will this affect their hearing in the future?First follow-up question: My baby is very young, just a month old.
Doctor's answer:
Babies with otitis externa typically present with itching, ear pain, and in severe cases, discharge from the ear. Chronic cases may exhibit itching, minimal discharge, thickening, cracking, and scaling of the external ear canal skin, accumulation of discharge, and even narrowing of the ear canal. Examination may also reveal tenderness upon pulling the auricle and pressing the tragus, diffuse redness and swelling of the external ear canal skin, accumulation of discharge on the ear canal wall, narrowing of the ear canal cavity, and swollen, painful lymph nodes around the ear. Specific treatments include taking small doses of anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving tablets, administering antibiotics and analgesics when necessary, or using local heat application, physical therapy, or procaine block therapy.