How to Detect Ear Infections

Ear infections are extremely painful earaches that primarily affect children under the age of 3. If untreated, the infection can travel to other parts of the body, including the brain, and cause temporary or permanent hearing loss. Detecting ear infections in children is not a sure science, but knowledge of certain signs will help you diagnose the problem and get your child medical treatment as soon as possible.

Instructions

• 1

  Observe your child for any unexplained excess irritability or difficulty sleeping at night. These can be the first indicators of an ear infection in a child under 2. Children who can articulate their feelings will complain of an earache or of a difficulty hearing out of that ear.

• 2

  Note whether the child has had an upper respiratory infection or a stuffy nose recently. Ear infections are caused by blockage in the Eustachian tube, which is caused by infection, allergens and irritants in the home and even a change in elevation. Most ear infections will follow a respiratory infection of some kind.

• 3

  Check for a fever. According to DrGreene.com, one third to half of ear infections cause a fever, and it mostly occurs in younger children. (See Reference 1) This is not, therefore, a sure way to detect an ear infection but with other symptoms a potential indicator nonetheless.

• 4

  Use an ear fluid detecting device such as Earcheck, which uses sonar technology to detect middle ear fluid, to confirm an ear infection. A green indicator means there is no infection or fluid in the ear, while orange or red indicator means that there is fluid and possibly an infection.